大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People's War site by a Volunteer from CSV/大象传媒 on behalf of Ninette Finch and has been added to the site with her permission. Ninette Finch understands the site's terms and conditions.

I was six years old when the war broke out and I can still remember the broadcasts but I didn鈥檛 really understand it; we all sat round the radio.
I think I used to sit under the table, it felt safer under there!

When they bombed the docks I can remember my uncle making shadow pictures on the walls which were red with the reflected glow. I went up to the Elephant and Castle to visit a relative a few days later and all the buildings were still smoking.

In 1940, I remember the first daylight raid, we heard the air raid warning but nothing had happened. I was in the front room painting and a bomb fell on the house opposite. I got down on the floor, like I had been told to and my mother came rushing into the room; you couldn鈥檛 see because there was so much dust. It was like night. I didn鈥檛 know when to get up so I crawled across the floor and tugged on my mother鈥檚 skirt at ask if I could get up yet. She must have been so relieved. I was lucky as our windows were blown out; there was no glass so I was unhurt. The people opposite had a daughter and she had been sent home early from working at the bank, she went down into the cellar with her father and her mother was making a cup of tea. She survived but the two were gassed to death. After that we would never go in the cellar, we would sleep in the cupboard under the stairs.

On V.E day my mother took me up to London and it was great, I will never forget it.

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