´óÏó´«Ã½

This story was submitted to the People's Wat site by a volunteer from CSV on behalf of Edna Perry and has been added to the site with her permission. Edna Perry fully understands the site's terns and conditions.

I lived in my grandparents house who had both died. There was my two aunts and uncle, and my tow cousins Lousia and Marjorie.

One of the things you’d listen for was the war news on the radio. I know it sounds awful but when you knew a plane was shot down you’d think that there were less Germans so you’d get that little bit happier.

We used to have to go to the shelter every night. It was odd everyone had ordinary jobs during the day and war jobs at night. Like my uncle was in the ARP, and my Aunt Dorothy. This meant they had to make sure there were no lights shining out during the black-outs.

I hated the shelters, which we’d have to go into every night. You never slept in your own bed always a shelter. It was a real treat after the war when we actually got to sleep in a proper bed. We’d have bunk-beds in the shelter — they were’nt really mattresses. I remember having a siren suit made it was pink and had a bit of fur round the hood. When the siren went you got into you’re suits. You wouldn’t even have time to take a nighty.

If you were in school when the air-raids came on everybody would get up and file immediately to the basement. There was an underground play-ground. There’d be no arithmetic and we’d just sit and tell stories. The only children to cry were a couple of Greek girls who were worried about their mother.

We went away to Exeter for six weeks when the soldiers when Dunkirk fell. It was panic when Dunkirk fell. There was always the worry that the Germans would get across the channel. But we weren’t really told about the implication. We’d listen to the news but our parents protected us

There were shelters in Regents Park. I remember coming out one day and there was fire everywhere. As well as bombs there were firebombs as well. Our garden was bombed — if it had hit another few yards our house would have been hit. We were really lucky.

You try to live everyday life. It was even the same with rationing. My aunt would do all the cooking as the more ration books you got the more food you could get. Vegetables were more easier to come by but you tried to go about life as normal as you can.

© Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.