I enclose a copy of an old photograph that belonged to my late father, Norman James, of Holwell, near Burford.

My dad was a war reserve police constable during the Second World War and served at Burford.

A note from him indicates that the photograph was taken during the filming of This Above All, which was released on May 12, 1942, coincidentally on the day after I was born!

As well as showing my dad, the photograph features Clive Briggs, played by Tyrone Power, seeking to avoid arrest as an Army deserter who had fallen in love with aristocratic Prudence Cathaway, played by Joan Fontaine.

I don’t know whether my dad’s apparent intuition as to the whereabouts of Briggs led to an arrest, but I suspect not!

I recall that the photograph was taken somewhere on the minor road to Westwell, leading from the A40 just west of Burford.

For the record, my dad was largely influential in my joining Oxfordshire Constabulary in 1960 and remaining with that force and with Thames Valley Police until I retired in 1991.

GEOFF JAMES
Hook Norton