大象传媒

Dancing for Victory

Pearl Suckling spent her war years in Dartford in Blenheim Road. At the start of the war she was nine years old but her memory of the events is clear. She came to the East Kent Community Voluntary Service offices in Margate to talk to Steve Murphy about her part in the war.

鈥淏efore the war there were a lot of us from Blenheim Road at dancing school and one girl in particular, Marjory Woodward, decided to form a group from the people in the road. We called ourselves the 鈥楤lenheim Juveniles鈥�. The air raids on Vickers in Crayford and J and E Halls in Dartford were too frequent so we only went to school about three days a week. This gave us time to do our rehearsals. We raised money with our performances, we almost raised enough money for a Blenheim bomber! We used to have the concerts around our local church hall, people would pay to come and watch us. We sang, did pantomimes at Christmas and performed various shows. All of this was organised by Marjory and her sister Connie. Marjory was then Woodward but later became Turner. She was only about fourteen at the time. We used to rehearse in her mothers house, only a terrace house, nothing grand. He mother would make the costumes out of whatever they could get hold of.鈥�

But talent could not be held back and as they became better and better they went on to bigger things.

鈥淲e were quite good, and then we started entertaining at the soldier camps. There was a big one on Dartford Heath, Bostal Heath and the hospital. There was a big furniture van used by a removal firm that we sometimes used to travel about in. They obviously had coupons for the petrol. I think we were considered as doing war work by entertaining the wounded troops and helping them to recover in the hospital. They would give us a wonderful cheer. I also remember getting jelly with coconut on which was something that we just didn鈥檛 get outside of the hospitals.鈥�

Dartford was a dangerous place during the war but Pearl remembers different things.

鈥淚 think that when you are a child it was quite exciting. I didn鈥檛 realise quite how dangerous it was. When the Battle of Britain was going on my dad would take me out of the shelter to stand and watch the dog fights. My dad was too old to go to war, he had a furniture shop locally. I don鈥檛 ever remember being frightened even when my Nan lost her house. It was bombed while they were in the shelter. The dog died because it was in the house, it didn鈥檛 like going into the shelter!鈥�

Pearl was evacuated late in the war and she has fond memories of that time.

鈥淲e were evacuated when the rockets started to come over. We spent five months in Yorkshire just outside Castleford. I was fifteen, couldn鈥檛 go to school because the nearest school was in Leeds and my mum said that was too far. I found myself a job in a haberdasher shop and I had a wonderful time.鈥�

What about after the war, would their stage career continue?

鈥淎fter the war Marjory herself opened a dancing school which she ran for quite a few years. I didn鈥檛 continue but I still keep in touch with Marjory and her sister Connie because they are like sisters to me.鈥�

Thank you Pearl Suckling

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