Remembrance Exhibition Continues in Bedford Park
Displays tell of the war time experiences of the Chiswick community
David Beresford (right) on Remembrance Sunday 2017 with the film director Dr Gareth Jones, whose great-uncle Cdr Walter Sterndale-Bennett DSO is remembered on the panel behind them
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This Remembrance Sunday, St. Michael and All Angels opened its doors to an exhibition that bridges generations and conflicts, marking 80 years since the end of World War II and 110 years since the pivotal World War I battles of Gallipoli and Loos.
Running daily until Sunday 16 November, the Remembrance Exhibition 1915–1945–2025 invites visitors to reflect on the enduring impact of war on the Chiswick community. Through personal stories, historic documents, and evocative display panels, the exhibition honours the lives of 15 local men who died in 1915, tracing their homes, regiments, and final battles. Names such as Cyril Austin, Harry Taverner, and Richard Gamble are brought vividly to life, reminding us that every name etched in stone carries a story worth telling.
The exhibition also explores the wartime experiences of children in 1945, with memories of the V1 ‘doodlebug’ that destroyed Chiswick Polytechnic (now ArtsEd) and shattered the East Window of St Michael’s itself. The first V2 rocket to hit Britain landed in Staveley Road, Chiswick, and its legacy is captured in oral histories and archival material featured in the book The People’s War in Chiswick, showcased at this year’s Chiswick Book Festival.
Another highlight is Stranded in France, the illustrated memoir of Joan Langrish, who was just 16 when war broke out while she was staying with her pen-pal in southern France. Her extraordinary journey home via Lisbon and later service in the SIS—under the infamous Kim Philby—offers a rare glimpse into the resilience and courage of young civilians caught in global conflict. Copies are available at the exhibition for £15.
The exhibition is held in memory of David Beresford, former archivist and churchwarden who led the St Michael & All Angels Church World War 1 Project, tracking the lives of the 128 people named on its war memorials. David died in 2022 at the age of 82.
From 2014 till 2018, to mark the centenary of WW1, he created illustrated panels which were displayed in the church, commemorating those who had died in each of the years 1914-1918. The stories of all 128 names are told in detail on the WW1 website, with maps and details of the roads where they lived.
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