Robin and Ron

Classical music conductor, Robin Smith, talks about his father, Ron, who was a prisoner-of-war held by the Japanese - in Changi Jail and in the railway death camps.Ron hated the film The Bridge on the River Kwai because, he said, "The reality was far worse than that..."Ron witnessed savagery during his four years as a prisoner. When he got home to Ipswich in 1946 his body and his faith in humanity were damaged.But he built a happy postwar life - as an Ipswich postman (delivering letters to Alf Ramsey); as a loving husband and father; and as an Ipswich football fan.Robin, who became a classical music conductor, was always an immense source of pride to him. And in Ron's later life, Robin gave him four grand-children whom he completely doted on.Send us Fan MailSupport the show