Joe Lake was a private in the British Army from 1940 to 1945. He officially enlisted at the age of fourteen under his older brother¿s name in 1940 as the Battle of Britain raged in the skies above England and Luftwaffe bombs rained down nightly on his home city of Birmingham. In England he served as an infantryman in the South Staffordshires, and as a Red Beret in the Regiment¿s Glider Battalion before landing at Normandy during the D-Day Allied invasion at Sword Beach in June 1944. By then, just 18 years old, he was a seasoned soldier, having had four years¿ active service. He saw heavy action during the autumn and winter of 1944-45 through France, Belgium, Holland and Germany, first in the trenches and then as a reconnaissance sniper for the 8th Brigade, often in 'no man¿s land¿ between his own and enemy lines. Now 92, Joe has lived at Point Lookout on North Stradbroke Island, Queensland, Australia, for the past thirty years, and was recently awarded the French Legion of Honour. To Hang Out The Washing is a remarkable account by a man whose memories are as vivid today as they were authentically lived more than 75 years ago.