The Soldier's Details
- Surname:
- Dimopoulos
- First Name:
- Peter John
- Rank:
- Private
- Regimental #:
- WX13869
- Company:
- Battalion Headquarters
- Enlisted:
- 4.06.1941
- Discharged:
- 23.01.1946
- DOB:
- 29.07.1925
- Place of Birth:
- Greece
- Father's Name:
- John Dimopoulos
- Mothers's Name:
- Panorea Dimopoulos
- Religion:
- Church of England
- Pre-war Occupation:
- Driver
- Singapore:
- Selarang Camp Changi, Sarangoon Road Camp, Selerang Barraks Changi
- Force:
- ‘D’ Force Thailand, V Battalion
- Camps Thailand:
- Kanchanaburi Aerodrome Camp, Kao Rin Specialist Camp
- Return Details 1945:
- Thailand-Singapore by aircraft, Singapore-Fremantle HMT Moreton Bay
General Description
In the January 1973 edition of Borehole Bulletin, Bill Castles in his ‘Hollywood Round-up’ had written ‘Peter Dimopoulos – The Mini-Ball (an earlier POW get-together) must have been too good a time for Peter as he had to come in for a brief rest period. Hope you are OK again Peter.’
Read the
Release for Peter’s recognition of ANZAC of the year 2013.
Above: Peter with Major General Jeff Sengelman, DSC, AM, CSC. Graduated from the Officer Cadel School in 1980. He took up his current position as Special Operations Commander Australia in December 2014.
Above: Peter and Barbara Dimopoulos with Peter’s children and grandchildren.
Left: Peter Dimopoulos and George Smith, Pingelly ex 2/18th Btn.
These 2 West Australians were with a party of Veterans selected by DVA to attend the Anzac Ceremony, Singapore, 2012. The other veterans L-R George Butler, Bill Ennis, Roy Cornford, and Derek Holyoake, .George Butler, Bill Ennis, Roy Cornford, and Derek Holyoake
Below: Travel by train advertisement for Anzac Day featuring Peter Dimopolous.
Peter passed away aged 90, August 26 2015, at Jarrahdale,WA. Until his final years, Peter was an active member of the Committee of the 2/4th, and was Treasurer.
He enlisted underage on 4th June 1941 and on 7 November 1941 was taken from the Reinforcements to Battalion HQs, Darwin.
In Singapore he was selected with D Force V Battalion to work on the Burma-Thai Railway however because he had learnt Japanese at Singapore he was separated from Cough’s Party and became interpreter to Lt-Col Malcom at Base Hospital, Kanchanaburi, believed to have been with No. 1 Group, No. 3 Hospital. (Malcolm wrote on 2 August 1943 that 7 men attached from Combatant Units were at No. 3 Hospital Kanchanaburi). Malcolm was L Force Medical Party.
Peter moved to Aerodrome Camp, Kanchanaburi from 23 Dec 1943 to 29 Jan 1944 and finally to Kao Rin about 42 Kilometre (or Kaoran) Medical Specialist Camp, 5 miles from Kanchanaburi until the end of the war.
You can read further about Peter
He returned to WA onboard ‘Moreton’ Bay.
Because Peter spoke reasonable Japanese he went to Rabaul for War Crimes duty. The first time was from 2nd August 1946 to 15 August 1946 and then 29 November 1946 to 23 May 1947.
He told Committee Member Cheryl Mellor that he was no longer able to remain at the trials. He simply wanted to leave and return home as he found the trials gruelling. He acknowledged being at the War Crimes greatly disturbed him. He was a speaker at a Fall of Singapore Service where with sincerity, and visible emotional he apologised on behalf of all the former 2/4th POWs who may have caused their wives and families distress.
Please listen to interview with Peter
Veteran Dick Ridgwell, Peter & Barbara Dimopoulos
