Withnall, Ray The Ukulele Man

The Story of a Prisoner of War of the Japanese and His Ukulele

Tom Boardman was a talented ukulele player from Leigh in Lancashire. At the start of the Second World War, he joined the Royal Army Ordnance Corps. After his training, he was posted to Singapore. To his surprise, there was no actual fighting there, but a growing danger that the Japanese might attack. For six months, he enjoyed the relaxed vibrancy of a city where different cultures mingled and bright lights shone. But Tom wondered why the planning and preparation for a Japanese attack on the jewel of the British Empire seemed so leisurely, disorganised and complacent. Singapore surrendered to the Japanese in February 1942, and Tom became a prisoner of war. In the confusion and chaos of the fierce fighting, he lost his beloved ukulele, but he cleverly hid the precious ring his wife Irene had lovingly given him when he left England. By a stroke of luck, Tom found a broken mandolin and fashioned a homemade replacement ukulele from its tuning pegs. Although Tom said it was too small and not loud enough, it surprisingly lasted two years and gave Tom great comfort while he toiled on the infamous Thai-Burma railway. Working in the heat and humidity of the Thai jungle was gruelling. He suffered from several life-threatening tropical diseases and other illnesses; the food was sparse and unappetising, and Japanese discipline was brutal. But they could not take away Tom's strong will to survive and his boundless enthusiasm for entertainment. Despite ongoing adversity, he gathered his energy and lifted the spirits of his fellow prisoners during the darkest hours by singing popular songs to them, and was always ready to perform at concert events in the camp. After completing the railway, Tom built a second, more robust ukulele. He sketched its design and technical specifications in his notebook, paying careful attention to the exact positioning of the frets. Tom searched the prison camp for discarded items and, with ingenuity, improvisational talent and infinite patience, crafted a remarkable ukulele. The concerts provided an important distraction from the harsh realities of imprisonment. With his new ukulele, Tom flourished in orchestras and choirs and performed in comedy programmes, plays and musicals. After Japan's surrender, Tom revealed the gold ring he had successfully hidden since his capture three and a half years earlier. He soon returned home and was reunited with Irene and his family, along with his ukulele. The Ukulele Man is the true story of Tom's triumph over adversity through his passion for music and entertainment and his determination not to let the Japanese get him down. The Imperial War Museum North has the ukulele on permanent display.