大象传媒

1
We were having tea with a friend when we heard the 鈥榩utt-putt鈥� of an approaching doodle-bug. Everyone was keen to see one of these and I dashed out into the garden, where I found my neighbours had also come out, and together we listened for the engine to stop 鈥� when it would fall from the sky. On it went: we talked for a few minutes, then I returned to the house. (I don鈥檛 remember if the question of my mother鈥檚 friend also came into the garden, arose). I found both of them UNDER the table鈥�..!
To this day I still have that table. It is in constant use.

2
It was 7 a.m. and my mother was just taking a cup of tea in to our visitor in bed, when the now-familiar 鈥榩utt-putt鈥� of a doodle bug was heard. 鈥淚t鈥檚 one of those THINGS鈥� shouts Louie, leaping out and getting under the bed. 鈥淥h no, my dear鈥�, says my so-calm mother 鈥� and then, there was an almighty explosion.
About 11/2 hours later, I went on my bike as usual, to work, and found my route blocked 鈥� houses in ruins and men searching for survivors. When I reached work I learned that some of our people had lost their homes, but nobody was killed. Most were in their Anderson shelters 鈥� but they all turned up for work, even if late!
The bomb was about a mile from my home.

The Rocket
A group of girls had got together a Drama Group and a play was put on in a church hall. I was not acting but selling programmes and halfway through the play, a loud explosion told us that a 鈥淰2 Rocket鈥� had landed not far away. In true professional style, our producer called out 鈥渃arry on鈥�, which they did. But I got jittery and was convinced that the rocket had landed on my home or mother, a mile or two away. As I was not now needed for programme selling, I left and caught a bus home. That is something I find so hard to believe 鈥� 鈥渃aught a bus home鈥�, just like that 鈥� on my own, with a ten minute walk the other end 鈥� no question of IF the buses were running! My home was safe; the bomb was about half a mile away, but that was the only time during the war that I really got jumpy.

In the Shelter
My cousin Jack was in the R.A.F., and at one time, was stationed at Uxbridge, near me. When he was off-duty, he would come to us for a few hours and at one time we were having a lot of air-raid warnings and slept in the Anderson shelter. I remember him coming down to us, having slept in the house, bringing us an early cup of tea in our garden refuge!

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