Talfourd-Jones, Paul, 1914-1945

Person

Talfourd-Jones, Paul, 1914-1945

1914-1945

Talfourd-Jones, Paul, son of William Henry Talfourd-Jones MRCS, of Harlesden, Middx; b. 13 Mar. 1914; adm. May. 1928 (G); left July 1932; Emmanuel Coll. Camb., matric. 1933; South Wales Borderers (TA) 1938-45 (Capt.); killed on active service (Far East) 10 Oct. 1945.

Paul Talfourd-Jones was born in London on the 13th of March 1914 the only son of Dr William Henry Talfourd-Jones MRCS and Dora (nee Perkins) Talfourd-Jones of “West Point”, Craven Park, Willesden in Middlesex, later of Castle Grounds, Devizes in Wiltshire. He was educated at Westminster School where he was up Grant’s from May 1928 to July 1932. He was a member of the 1st Cricket XI in 1932. He matriculated for Emmanuel College, Cambridge to read Medicine in 1933, but left in 1936 and did not graduate. He boxed for Cambridge University and was awarded a Blue in 1935.
In 1938 he became an assistant sales manager for Thomas Edison Ltd of Victoria House, Southampton Row, London before joining Phoenix Ltd of Kentish Town as their sales manager in 1939. He was married at Willesden, Middlesex in 1939 to Rhoda Alice (nee Mannell) of Ebford in Devon; they had two daughters, Wendy Helen, born on the 3rd of October 1941, and Sara Hilary, born on the 23rd of October 1943.
He enlisted as a Private in the 9th Battalion, Middlesex Regiment (60th Searchlight Regiment) in the Territorial Army on the 20th of April 1937 and was promoted to Corporal on the 3rd of September 1939. He attended the 166th Officer Cadet Training Unit based at Douglas from the 26th of March 1940 before being commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the South Wales Borderers on the 17th of August 1940. He was posted to the 2nd Battalion of his Regiment on the 23rd of August 1940 and served with them until the 22nd of August 1941 when he was posted to supervise at a prisoner of war camp at Cambridge until the 16th of January 1942. On the 17th of January 1942 he was posted to the 30th Battalion of his Regiment and served with them until the 16th of February 1943. He was promoted to Lieutenant in February 1942.
On the 17th of February 1943 he applied to join the Special Operations Executive as an instructor and underwent a period of instruction until April 1943. He was then posted to Beaulieu where he was an instructor on an industrial sabotage course. He was serving at No.17 Special Training School when he was posted to No. 44 Special Training School in January 1944. He was promoted to Acting Captain on the 1st of November 1943 and to temporary Captain on the 1st of February 1944, a rank he relinquished on the 24th of July 1945. On the 1st of May 1944 he was appointed as an explosives instructor and on the 9th of June 1944 he was posted to Force 136 in Ceylon where he worked as a paramilitary and as an air supply instructor. He returned to England on the 10th of June 1945 and, on the 14th of July, he was ordered to report to the Adjutant of the Westminster Garrison at noon on the 18th of July 1945. He attended a court martial on the 26th of July 1945 where he was charged on five counts of borrowing money from subordinates and of passing post dated cheques. He was cleared of four of the charges but was convicted of the fifth. Following his trial he was sent on leave to await further orders. He was later posted to the No. 21 Holding Battalion based at Newton Camp in Powys and was dismissed from the Special Operations Executive on the 6th of October 1945.
He was killed in a civilian motor accident at Newton.
He is commemorated on the war memorial at Emmanuel College, Cambridge.
He is buried at Devizes Cemetery Section X.S., Grave 34.

Captain 145127; South Wales Borderers attached to the Special Operations Executive

GB 2014

International Standard Archival Authority Record for Corporate Bodies, Persons and Families - ISAAR(CPF) 2nd edition

Final

Full

Prepared for import into AtoM by Westminster School Archive staff, 2019-2020. Updated by Bethany Duck, Archives Assistant, September 2022.

The Record of Old Westminsters: A biographical list of all those who are known to have been educated at Westminster School from Play 1919 to Election 1989, Volume 4, compiled by F.E. Pagan and H.E. Pagan, Padstow, 1992.

Westminster School Second World War Memorial by John C. Hamblin, 2022.