‘Sends chills down our spine,’ say neighbours of WWII enthusiast who hoards unexploded bombs and lets off air siren
NEIGHBOURS living next to a WWII enthusiast have said his air raid siren is “so loud” it sends “chills down their spines”.
Ray Fricker, 67, has spent 14 years amassing roughly 900 pieces that now cover the rooms and walls of his dining room in his 1901-built three-bed home, in Droylsden, Greater Manchester.
The collection that makes up his dedicated ‘war room’ includes carvings from POW camps and letters from soldiers.
He also has an unexploded bomb, machine guns and gas masks.
“I’ve got a shell that landed on the British side in World War One when they were battling,” he told the Manchester Evening News.
“It went straight down into the dugouts, and it never went off.”
One of his most prized possessions is his authentic World War Two air raid siren, which would have told residents to run for cover as Nazi bombers flew over Britain.
And those living in the beautiful 125-year-old quiet cul-de-sac have said Ray’s siren can be heard “a couple of miles away”.
Dad-of-two Tom Hunter, 59, a retired senior aircraftman who served in the RAF for 15 years, told The Sun: “You can hear it and feel it. It makes a hell of a noise.
“He let it off on June 6 for the 80th anniversary of D-day, but it usually only goes off twice a year – on VE day and New Year’s Eve.”
John Young, 73, spent 15 years in the army, which included three tours to Northern Ireland with the Black Watch.
The dad-of-two said: “He sounds it on VE day, and we’re quite happy about it.
“Nobody ever complains about it. You’re normally looking at history through your eyes, but when the siren goes off, you are using your ears.
“There are many people who have never heard sounds like that. It adds authenticity to the occasion.
“The first time I heard it, because it’s so loud, a chill went down my spine.
“When that went off in World War Two, people ran for cover into bunkers.
Sound the warning
AIR-raid sirens became a daily part of life in London during the height of the Blitz.
They were first sounded in the capital in September 1939.
When people heard the air-raid sirens they would make for a shelter.
These were often Anderson shelters built in gardens out of corrugated iron or Morrison shelters constructed indoors.
Many people also crowded into tube stations in London
Daily life would continue within the larger shelters.
“So you are suddenly transplanted 80 years back to how people panicked and ran for shelters.”
John’s wife, retired French teacher Marguerite Young, 73, said of the siren: “You can certainly hear it.
“Last time Ray had it going, we were walking back form the main road and there was a lady panicking.
“I said, ‘Don’t worry, it’s only our neighbour’. It’s very loud.
“I think when they first let it off, they could hear it in the middle of Droylsden, a couple of miles away.
“But I suppose in war time, when that went off, the sound would travel further as there wouldn’t be as much traffic noise.”
Grandad-of-two Terry Goodwin, 65, who lives a few doors down from Ray, said: “It comes on a couple of times a year, but it doesn’t interfere with anything.
“My mates on the other side of Droylsden text me, saying ‘Why is a siren going off.’ But he only does it on big anniversaries.
“This area is like a living museum, and it’s a community – everybody knows everybody. So it’s probably just in the right kind of setting.”