Early Life
John Henry Cound Brunt was born on Wednesday 6 December 1922, in Priest Weston, Shropshire to Thomas Henry Brunt and Nesta Mary Brunt (née Cound). He had an elder sister named Dorothy (born 13 May 1920) and a younger sister Isobel (born 5 October 1923). When Dorothy was eight, the family moved to a farm near Whittington, Shropshire where John grew up. As he became older, his fearless nature became more apparent; every week, he read the comic "Tiny Tots", which featured instructions on "How to teach yourself to swim". One day, he asked Dorothy to take him to the Shropshire Canal which went through their farmland. Before his sister could stop him, John had taken off all his clothes and jumped into the canal. When they finally arrived home, their mother wanted to know why he had no clothes on, and John responded that he had been teaching himself to swim. As he got older, his daredevil attitude became even more serious; on one occasion, he was found swinging himself along the guttering of a dutch barn sixty feet above the farmyard.
When old enough, John was enrolled at Ellesmere College where his mischievous streak became quickly apparent through pranks and dares; once, while in the sanatorium with mumps, he slipped a laxative into the matron's tea. Nevertheless, he is fondly remembered at the school. It was while he was at Ellesmere that he contracted measles, resulting in his need to wear glasses. An enthusiastic sportsman, John played cricket, hockey, rugby, water polo and wrestling. He was the only pupil at the school to tackle the headmaster while playing rugby, injuring the older man's knee in the process.
In 1934, the Brunt family moved to Paddock Wood in Kent and, in his school holidays "Young John" (as he was known in the village) would come home. Although he was still a reckless individual, he was thought of very highly, and helped train the Paddock Wood Home Guard between 1940 and 1943, assisted by his father. He spent his last days in Paddock Wood helping with the hop harvest.
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