"It's not the England I came to": Auschwitz survivor tells LBC

26 January 2020, 13:33

Ivor Perl said that when he arrived in England, he thought it was "heaven'. He told Andrew Castle that it's no longer the England he came to.

Ivor Perl was born in 1932 in Hungary. He had five brothers and three sisters.

He was taken to Auschwitz, aged 12, with his entire family. Only Ivor and one of his brother survived.

He spoke to Andrew Castle as part of the commemoration of 75 years since Auschwitz was liberated.

Ivor told Andrew Castle about his experience of the Holocaust.

He was first deported to a ghetto, then to Auschwitz.

He described arriving there as "horrendous" and how it followed a four day journey in a cattle truck with 70 to 80 people.

Upon arriving, he was separated from his mother and sisters. He never saw them again.

Ivor was liberated by the Americans.

Ivor said: "When I arrived in England, I thought I'd arrived in heaven. Literally."

Andrew Castle asked about what he thinks of England now.

He replied: "I was hoping that politics will be kept out of this but I felt, as I mentioned to you, when I came to England that I couldn't believe myself. But it's not the England I came to, that's all I can say."

Ivor attends Jewish Care's Holocaust Survivor's Centre.