06/11/12…AMENDMENT: Local war hero to have Thame street named after him

CORRECTION; We would like to point out that John Massey, mentioned below, was never Mayor of Thame but a long-standing Town Councillor during the 1980s. We apologise for any embarrassment caused to Mrs Massey over this misunderstanding.

A Thame resident, who worked as a secret agent in German occupied France during World War II, is to have a street in a new housing development named after him.

Arthur Staggs, who will be 100 years-old in November, lives at Meadowcroft Residential care home in Thame. He is the proud holder of the Legion D’Honneur from the French Government for his exploits during WWII, when he used his guile and knowledge of the French language to avoid discovery, despite being interrogated by the Gestapo.

Arthur is an Honoury Citizen of Thame, and his name will be reflected in one of the new roads currently being built on the old Memec site, near Jane Morbey Way.

Another Thame resident, the late John Massey, a past Mayor of Thame, will also have a street named after him on the new development.

photo: Arthur during a visit to a French market in Thame, with ex Mayor of Thame, Jeannette Matelot Green