Our talk this week was Will the Real Lieutenant Turnbull Please Stand Up by Eric Forster.

Firstly, Mr Forster is a raconteur of the highest order and he proceeded to weave a spellbinding tale which all began with the purchase of an antique military swagger stick in Knaresborough market.

The stick had a brass ferrule at one end and a silver knob at the other. The knob was engraved with the crest of the Royal Flying Corps. Upon closer examination a military serial number was discovered scratched on to the stem of the stick. Mr Forster was intrigued and decided to trace the owner by contacting the Royal Air Force Records Office and quoting the number. No result; Royal Flying Corps records had been destroyed in the second war.

The tale now takes one of its many twists. A local folk tale concerning a RFC airman who crashed in Knaresborough and then disappeared led to a memorial plaque in a Knaresborough church. It told of a Lieutenant David Dixon Turnbull RFC, killed 1917. The story went that Turnbull, flying from London to Edinburgh, had lost his way and landed on a patch of ground near Knaresborough castle. Having ascertained his whereabouts he attempted to take off once more but clipped the trees and plunged into the gorge. A search of the wreckage revealed no trace of the pilot!

Mr Forster kept the forum rapt with twist after twist in this incredible tale of dedicated detective work. Until, he finally revealed to an enthralled audience the last breathtaking twist – which I must not divulge. Ken Selkirk gave the vote of thanks.

The Forum will resume in October, new members welcome. Prospective members should phone general secretary George Mountford on 01423 564858.