Douglas Bader

[dweeza]

Was Douglas Bader knighted? If so, what was the date and what was the award?

[archbishop]

Yes he was knighted in 1976 and he died 6 years later. A more nasty man I have never met, but that is only a personal view.

[smudge]

Did you actually meet him then archbishop & in what way was he nasty?

[archbishop]

Libel laws don't apply when someone is dead, do they?

Anyway he was President of "Riding for the disabled". He and  Roy Carroll were at a do that I was at. Bader refused to talk to anyone or sign autographs and demanded he was waited on for his every whim. Roy Carroll on the other hand was the complete opposite and couldn't do enough, in fact a very nice man and it was a sad day when he died. 

[honkytonkman]

According to reports, Bader was in discomfort for a lot of the time as his 'tin' legs and the leather sockets in them would chafe his skin red raw. But also I understand from books about him that he was a naturally mercurial character, who didn't suffer fools gladly, was very competitive and felt he had to push himself self hard to prove he was more than equal to any other man. Still, thanks to his brilliant air warfare tactics, undenied courage, supreme flying skills and leadership abilities he was a key player in turning the Battle of Britain into a victory.

[Peter Pedant]

Bader was a war ace and certainly was an important factor in Battle of Britain.

The difficulty we are facing is that famous people who do famous things may not be very nice people. His batman died recently and got an obituary in the DT. Bader opposed repatriation (of the batman) with the words 'my skivvy you are and my skivvy you'll stay'. The batman stayed.

My dear late father echoed my lord Archbishop's opinion, when he met him in POW camp (not Colditz)

[Philtaz]

I actually had my first ever driving lesson on Tangmere airfield(abandoned by then, obviously) and stories did abound in that area as to how cantankerous, awkward and downright rude he actually was.

By all accounts(socially) he was not the character portrayed by Kenneth More in reach For The Sky. 

[smudge]

Oh so now I know! I always thought Douglas Bader was a really nice person, but that was only going by how he was portrayed by Kenneth Moore in the film too! We've all got our faults though & if he helped us win WW2......we'll say no more.........!