AS A painter and decorator working for Birmingham Corporation, Charlie Wilcox appeared an unlikely candidate to win an award for gallantry in circumstances of extreme peril and in the eye of the public. Yet it was in pursuit of his trade that those circumstances came about and he responded with the resource, coolness and personal fortitude of the Chindit special force with which he had served in the jungles of Burma during the Second World War.

On August 23, 1949, then aged 30, Wilcox and other men were engaged in painting the exterior of a Birmingham Corporation building in the city centre. One of the less experienced painters — Leslie Burrows, aged 21 — climbed a ladder to begin work on a third-floor outside window. He stepped from the top of the ladder to the sill of the window only to find that it had been bricked up from the inside, leaving no handhold for him to keep his balance. He turned back towards the ladder and was either unable to see it or take the unsupported step onto the top rung. In panic, he crouched down on the narrow sill.

Another painter climbed the ladder and supported Burrows for a few minutes but returned to street level, reporting him suffering from severe shock and unable to move. Wilcox went up and positioned himself on the end of the adjacent window arch, kneeling on a piece of masonry, 18 inches square, from where he could support Burrows — although he also was without any handhold.

The fire brigade was summoned but did not arrive until 45 minutes later, apparently because of a misunderstanding over the location. During all of this period, Wilcox remained supporting and trying to calm Burrows by assuring him that help was at hand — the dramatic scene being watched nervously by silent onlookers in the street below.

Burrows had lost consciousness by the time the fire brigade arrived. A ladder with block and tackle was raised and he was strapped into a harness and lowered to safety. Wilcox returned to street level, seemingly undisturbed by his experience, yet any involuntary movement made by Burrows during the prolonged and tense period above the street would almost certainly have caused both men to fall to their deaths.

An unusual feature of the incident was the picture taken at the moment of rescue by a photographer of The Birmingham Post & Mail who had followed up the call to the fire brigade. Wilcox’s bravery and coolness were recognised by the award of the Edward Medal, instituted by King Edward VII in 1907 for acts of bravery by miners and quarry workers. The charter was later changed to include acts of gallantry throughout industry.

When civilian awards were rationalised in 1971, all surviving holders of the Edward Medal were authorised to exchange their awards for the George Cross. This had been instituted by King George VI during the war primarily to recognise “acts of conspicuous courage in circumstances of extreme danger” by civilians. Wilcox went to Buckingham Palace to receive his GC in March 1973.

Charles Wilcox was born in Birmingham in 1919, and was educated at Osler Street School, Ladywood, and Raddleburn Road School, Selly Oak. He began work as a painter and decorator for Birmingham Corporation at the age of 14 in 1933.

He served during the Second World War, initially with 1st Battalion The South Staffordshire Regiment in Palestine and the Western Desert, then as a machinegunner — the South Staffordshires’ specialist role at that time — providing anti-aircraft protection on board merchant ships supplying the Eighth Army through the Mediterranean ports in 1942.

He rejoined the 1st South Staffordshires in 1943 to accompany them to India, where they joined Brigadier Michael Calvert’s 77th Long Range Penetration Brigade for the second Chindit operation behind Japanese lines in Burma in the spring of 1944. Years later, Wilcox described his time with the Chindits as the “hardest part of his war”.

The 1st South Staffordshires marched from the jungle fortress known as “Aberdeen” to another at “White City”, and from there, with two other battalions, to establish a block on the Japanese-controlled road and rail defile at Mawlu. It took eight days to get through the jungle, the route leading over hills rising to 4,000ft. But Calvert’s force got though and inflicted a decisive tactical defeat on the Japanese at the battle of Pagoda Hill. After such fighting, holding a man in shock on a window sill 45ft above ground apparently held no terrors for Wilcox. Such bravery appeared to run in the family, since his uncle, Lance Corporal Alfred Wilcox, also a Birmingham man, won the VC in France in 1918.

Charles Wilcox worked for Birmingham Corporation until 1965 and then as a car assembler until 1980. In retirement he divided his time between his garden and restoring old clocks.

He is survived by his wife Edith, a son and two daughters. A son predeceased him.

Charles Wilcox, GC, was born on May 11, 1919. He died on April 4, 2006, aged 86.