- Contributed by听
- 大象传媒 Open Centre, Hull
- People in story:听
- Millie Parker of Hull
- Location of story:听
- Ashford, Kent
- Background to story:听
- Civilian Force
- Article ID:听
- A4502602
- Contributed on:听
- 20 July 2005
Millie PArker and her Land Army pals celebrate VE Day 2005 at the 大象传媒 Open Centre in Hull.
As told to Alan Brigham, Hullwebs.co.uk, 17/07/2005
I volunteered for the Land Army. I went to have a medical, I wasn鈥檛 quite 17陆 so I had to wait and a fortnight before I was 18 they sent for me to go down London and from London I was sent to Ashford, Kent where I was for 2陆 years.
I鈥檝e got lots of good memories from them days; for one, I was landed on good lodgings 鈥 which was the main thing and I was with a good crowd but they were all Cockneys and you know how they talk when you get on the coach and I thought 鈥淲hat have I gotten in to.鈥, but after a week I could understand them.
One morning I remember in particular, we were working on the Appledor Estate farm and we hadn鈥檛 been in the fields an hours when the Doodlebugs started coming over; there was five hundred. There was the aeroplanes shooting them down. We flung ourselves to the ground and we were lucky that nobody got hurt. I think we was in the field an hour like that. We got up and that broke the tension as we all started laughing at each other. When it came two we were in this patch of parsnips and the leaves were all wet. We鈥檇 all got white dots on our noses and our faces and everywhere. It really broke the tension that did.
We did a benevolent concert. One of the ladies, we didn鈥檛 know who she was or where she came from, well she fell in the threshing machine and lost one of her legs. There was a benevolent fund but there was never much came from it so we decided to hold our own benevolent concert. Well you never had such a benevolent concert in your life. There was so much talent in the Land Girls, it was brilliant! All the solders used to come and book us and we had this for three month鈥. It was absolutely fabulous. Then there DJ parties, I can remember one but I can鈥檛 remember going to the next one {cheeky laughter}. Oh it was a good 鈥榰n, we had an excellent time.
When the war was over we were told 鈥淭hat鈥檚 it, the war鈥檚 finished, you can go home now. Give us yer uniform back.鈥 There was no thank you nor nothing! That was it. All I got for nearly three years service is my arm band, this one I鈥檓 wearing here.
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