- SURNAME
Mycock
- FORENAME
Edwin John Nichols (Michael)
- UNIT
1 SAS (C Squadron)
- RANK
Lieutenant
- NUMBER
302139
- AWARD
Croix de Guerre (France)
- PLACE
France 1944
- ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
1 SAS (C Squadron) 1943-45
born 28.6.1924 Hong Kong
died 17.12.2010 Vaucluse,New South Wales,Australia
Obituary from Sydney Morning Herald
January 17, 2011
Edwin Mycock 1924 - 2010
Having joined the English Home Guard when he turned 16, Edwin Mycock started his war early. He served in parachute regiments in Europe when he was old enough to join up and, after trading in Asia, moved to Sydney as a successful businessman.
Edwin John Nichols Mycock was born in Hong Kong on June 28, 1924, the middle of three sons to Charles and Lilian Mycock, who were teachers there. After starting his schooling at the Central British School, in 1936 he was taken to London, where he joined his elder brother, Reg, at school. Charles returned to Hong Kong.
Advertisement: Story continues below
When the war started, Edwin's school was evacuated to Tunbridge Wells. With the Home Guard and as he cycled to school each day, Edwin watched the Battle of Britain overhead. He also helped to put out fires caused by incendiary bombs.
At school he played rugby and was captain of the athletics and swimming teams. When he could, he cycled to London to see his mother. On one visit a bomb destroyed 21 houses in their street but he and Lilian were safe.
After leaving school at 18, Edwin joined the army and was commissioned into the Parachute Regiment. However, before his posting, he was accepted by the SAS Regiment. After the invasion of Europe, he served in the 1st SAS Regiment and was awarded the Croix de Guerre. He continued in Europe until 1945, then helped in the repatriation of 300,000 Germans home from Norway.
In Norway, Mycock had two periods of leave - one to meet Reg, who had been taken prisoner while serving in Crete in 1942, the other to collect Charles when he arrived by hospital ship from New Zealand, where he had been recuperating after being a prisoner of the Japanese in Hong Kong. Charles never really recovered from the ordeal.
The SAS was disbanded and Mycock finally joined the Parachute Regiment and served in Palestine. He left the army in late 1947 as a captain but not before having a narrow escape while visiting the King David Hotel in Jerusalem when it was blown up, killing 91 people.
Mycock then joined the trading company Jardine Matheson and was posted to its shipping department in Hong Kong. He established their canvassing department there and in 1949 was sent to Taiwan as shipping manager. There he rebuilt the rundown shipping department and made it the most profitable department in the Taiwan branch. As well, he met and married Mabel Chou.
In 1959, Mycock was approached by the Australian Department of Trade to help to promote commercial links with Taiwan. For six years, he was the Government Trade Correspondent for Taiwan. In 1969, the family decided to leave the island, selected Australia as a good place to be and moved to Sydney. Mycock established new companies in Australia and New Zealand for Seagram.
In 1971, Mycock built the family home in Vaucluse with architect Philip Cox. The house is on the site of an old Navy wartime lookout station and has sweeping harbour views from Dover Heights to Manly.
Finally, in 1978, when Seagram's was well established in Australia and the south Pacific, Mycock resigned to form a family company, now Colby Office Products, an importer and wholesaler.
In his last years, Mycock looked back to his time in the SAS. He marched on Anzac Days for the first time and went to reunions in Sydney and Europe. It gave him great pleasure to host gatherings of serving members of the SAS.
Edwin Mycock is survived by Mabel, children Timmy, Wally, Robin, Gordon and Doreen and grandchildren Sharon, Diane, Shelton, Andrew, Jessie, Ilana, Caitlin and Sarah.
A memorial service for Edwin Mycock will be held at 11am on Wednesday at St Andrew's Scots Kirk in Rose Bay.
Ilana Mycock
Last edited by a moderator:
