My destination, a place on my list, not unlike a bucket list, of places I'd like to visit, Effingham in Surrey. There in St Lawrence's Churchyard, lies the famous engineer and inventor, Sir Barnes Wallace.
Most famous for his brilliantly inventive and hugely successful, if also very costly in terms of lives lost, bouncing bomb, used on the Mohne and Eder dams, he was also responsible for the design of the Wellington bomber.
Having paid my respects and taken my photos, it was nice to spend a while in this peaceful little churchyard, contemplating the contribution this great man had to the war effort. Whilst the pilots, soldiers and sailors quite rightly take the limelight, it's all too easy to forget the part the 'back room boys' played in operations too. Would Gibson have been a hero, without Wallis?
It's clear Sir Barnes is well thought of in the area, as a newish looking housing development's close is named after him.
Am hoping to get to some other memorials in the coming months, so watch this space.
