Allo, Allo... 19th & 20th May 2012

Haworth is famous for many things, amongst them the village’s annual 1940s weekend where locals and visitors alike revel in kitting themselves out in 1940s gear for a weekend of events to celebrate the era where the spirit of the blitz shone brightly through the dark days of the war.

Taking part in the nostalgia which abounds during the special weekend and rubbing shoulders with Tommies, GIs, SS soldiers, land girls, spivs and evacuees parading amongst wartime tanks, jeeps and trucks was a well known figure in Masonic circles - though not dressed in the manner his Masonic colleagues usually see him.

Walter and Colleen enjoy the 1940s weekend at Haworth as members of the French Resistance.

For, found near a certain cafe in Haworth and armed to the teeth with an array of lethal weapons as a fierce French Resistance fighter and accompanied by a ‘lady’ dressed as a type more usually seen on the street corners of Paris, was none other than Captain Walter Porter and his friend Colleen.  Walter, it transpires is a regular visitor to events such as Haworth’s 1940s weekend and during the summer months he and Colleen travel to venues all over the country playing out their roles as members of the French resistance.

With the streets transformed to a wartime village, a capacity crowd many of whom, like Walter and Colleen, enjoyed getting into their parts in authentic 1940s dress. Also on show over the weekend were military and vintage vehicles, re-enactment groups, an RAF vintage plane flypast, vintage bands and dancers in the streets jiving to the music The crowds were even treated to a stirring address from ‘Winston Churchill’ and a visit by the ‘Queen Mother.’ The event also raised over £12,000 for Help for Heroes.

We’ve been rumbled. Walter spots our cameraman!

Typically, Walter had the last word to say on Haworth’s 1940s weekend: “We thoroughly enjoy these events. We wouldn’t do them otherwise. I can thoroughly recommend to anyone who hasn’t already enjoyed the experience of one of these meetings to get along and see for themselves what a great day out it is.”