大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People's War by Judith Harridge on behalf of Wynne Wilson. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions.
In 1944 my husband and I went to live in London, as there was a terrible housing shortage in Warwick. We managed to find rooms with a Jewish lady, she was very kind.
I think the flying bombs/doodlebugs brought on my early labour; my daughter only weighed 4lbs when she was born. When I first went into labour there was an air raid going on. My husband went to get an ambulance, he went to the local school knowing the local fire brigade slept there, and at first they thought he was a burglar! By the time the ambulance arrived my baby daughter had already been born. As the local hospital had been bombed by flying bombs I had to go to the hospital in Bromley by Bow, which was miles away- my husband had to stand on the ambulance's running board holding a torch! As my daughter needed to stay in hospital until she weighed 51/2 lbs, I had to visit her three times a day to feed her; it was a very long journey there and back.
We lived in Rectory Square, some of the shelters nearby were bunks built into the walls of the rectory, on VE night these were burnt on a large bonfire!
I went to live in Warwick September 1941, a week later I went to a dance at the Palais de Danse in Leamington, when I left the dance I found out I had missed the last bus home. I had walked as far as the canal bridge, Emscote Road when a man on a bicycle stopped to ask me what a young lady was doing out alone so late at night. I told him I was new to the area and had missed the last bus home, he then very kindly took me to Brook Street on his bicycle. When I got home I was instructed to keep my coat on and go to the Police Station straightaway as my uncle had reported me missing!

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