Tension between Japan and Britain had been growing. Japan was at war with China, and Britain supporting the Chinese Nationalist Army. The months following what became known as the ‘Evacuation Crisis’ were set, too, against the wider background of the war with Germany, and the developing global situation.

The husbands left behind in Hong Kong formed a relatives’ committee, continually lobbying for the return of the evacuees – sent first to the Philippines, and then on to Australia – while hopes for their return rose and fell with the seesaw of tension in the Far East.

Postings away from Hong Kong led to some families reuniting during the 18 months as the colony lived in the surreal atmosphere of the ‘bachelors’ keeping the home fires burning. But most would have to wait, as the colony continued to slide towards war, and the ‘three years and eight months’ of Japanese occupation.

The letters of George Bearman, electrical engineer at the colony’s naval dockyard, create a poignant, human thread to the narrative of events shaping the story of Hong Kong during the Second World War.