Born in Yorkshire in 1899, Captain Mick Jennings served with the Royal Engineers (RE) in Mesopotamia from 1917 - 1919. After Sheffield University, he worked in the Sudan, the Gold Coast (now Ghana) and Malaya where becoming the municipal architect in Kuala Lumpur in 1935. He was again serving in the RE when Singapore fell. His escape and captivity are recorded in this book. Post-war after a brief repatriation he returned to Kuala Lumpur where, in 1953, he established his own practice. He retired to New Zealand in 1958. He died in 1964.
Margery Jennings, née Hellewell, also born in Yorkshire in 1908, became a nurse in the Medical Auxiliary Service prior to the Japanese invasion. The diary of her attempted escape and Japanese captivity was recovered and is held in the Imperial War Museum. A talented musician, Margery was involved in the Camp Vocal Orchestra and playing the piano, when there was one. She died in captivity on 12 May 1945.
