The young man shown in the thumbnail on the left is Frederick Potts. He holds the very special distinction of being the only person in the history of Reading to be awarded the Victoria Cross following his actions at Gallipoli in August 1915. He was 22 at the time.
He is known as the hero with the shovel because of he used this to transport a wounded man, Arthur Andrews, at the end of two days of hell. His actions risked his own life, and saved Andrews. After the war, Potts returned to Edgehill Road and became a master taylor. The attached links tell a very special story if you want to know more…