大象传媒

My name is Brenda,I was born in Coventry Warwickshire in 1924.All my War experiences took place in or around Coventry.
This is my story.
My Mother died when I was 10 years old,and so when I left school at 14 years old,Iwas expected to

stay at home to look after the house, my father,younger sister and brother.I did this for 18 months, until my father took my sister and brother to Virginia Water in Surrey,to stay with my Grandparents.
This was on September 3rd 1939.I was alone in the house,with the radio on, when I heard that war had been declared.I looked up the garden,expecting to see German soldiers marching down the path, fortunately common sense prevailed.With just dad and I,I got a job at Timpsons the shoe shop,which I enjoyed, at 16 I was earning 13/6d per week,65p in modern money
On 14th November 1940,I went to the cinema in Albany Road, with my father.The film was Hurricane. The air raid started at 7pm,and when we came out at 9pm,we ran to a brick shelter in Kensington Road,where we stayed for an hour before running to another at the top of Bristol Road,where we stayed for a few minutes before continuing on to a large underground shelter on Hearsall Common where we stayed until 7am the next morning.Arriving home, we found that the only damage to the house was a broken kitchen window, caused by a land mine a few streets away.
Shortly after,I joined the W.V.S. stationed in the Central Police Station.I went there every evening after work and helped prepare meals for about 40 security men.On Saturday evenings, it was usually about Midnight by the time the washing up was done,and i'd sleep in the corridor .Next morning,it was cook breakfast ,wash up and then make urns of tea to take out on a mobile canteen to the Memorial Park to serve to the Home Guard.After that,back to the Police Station,empty and clean the Canteen and then go home to a late Sunday lunch.
I was later called up into The Royal Observer Corps,stationed at Broadwater House in Earlsdon Avenue.We were attatched to RAF Fighter Command,which was very interesting.I met a great lot of people ,and was able to continue with my W.V.S. work when it didn't interfere with my shifts in the R.O.C..On V.E.Day, we were on nights.We started 10pm, and at Midnight,a voluntary crew of men took over whilst we had a 2 hour break.That night, we went to the bottom of the garden, crawled under the gates and walked into town.We couldn't get any further than the Quadrant and so we stayed and joined in with the singing and dancing and then later crawled back under the gates and
returned to the Ops Room,where they must have thought that we'd been very quiet.The officers didn't ask any questions,and we didn't say anything.We were gradually disbanded over the course of the next 2 months.
It was quite an exciting time really,Idont'remember being really scared,although I had several near misses. I was very fortunate not to lose anyone close to me.
During my time in the W.V.S.,I met many American soldiers,mostly Police.There were 4 policewomen in Coventry,who didn't wear uniform,and I sometimes used to go with them to Stoneleigh Camp to look for girls that they wanted to interview,which was quite exciting,also,the W.V.S. were invited to concerts at the camp which were very good.The Military Police often came into the kitchen at the Police Station,they were a great bunch of young men.I went out with a few of them, and was always treated with the greatest of respect.I believe that they were nearly all killed in the Normandy Landings.
We also entertained 25 wounded Americans from Stratford, to tea at the Police Station.After tea,Pearl Hyde told me to take them to the cinema,so I took them to the Gaumont to see Alexander's Ragtime Band.That finished at 9 o'clock,and so I took them to an American bar.Those who wanted,went in,and the rest of us went back to the Police station,where they were collected and returned to Stratford.
One of them ,Bob,came to see me several times,and eventually asked me to marry him.I refused,but I sometimes wonder what sort of life I would have had in America.
I was teased for a long time about taking out 25 Americans.

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