大象传媒

My name is Doreen Brown (Nee Wright) now 73yrs old. I was 8 years old when the 2nd world war started. My father Mr Herbert Wright had to join the 8th Army Royal Artillery and was posted abroad until the war ended, so my mother & I were left alone. I remember every time the siren went for an air-raid I was very very frightened. Night-times, when the siren went off, we went down into my neighbours air-raid shelter which was underground in there garden. Sometimes we had difficulty getting the out of bed so we had to knock hard on their back door. My neighbours were the Perkins family Mrs perkins was pregant at the time.The shelter was very cosy with beds and blankets tea making things etc. So we were alright. Mr Perkins wasn't called up because he wasn't fit enough and didn't come down to the shelter with us but kept watch. We lived in Bramford Lane, so I went to springfield Lane School,everything was sort of normal except for the air-raids. Food & clothing were rationed using the ration books. At weekend we would go to my grand parents either Agnes Rice who lived in Bramford Road or my other grandmother who liver in North Hill Road the other end of town. I remember coming home after being at my Grandmothers and there had been a bomb dropped in All Saints Road which was almost opposite us. All our windows were out and there was lots of mess. A lot of children were evacuated but my mother wanted me to stay with her so I didn't go. My father used to send parcels of fruit home to us & of course, my fathers army pay was sent home to us so we got on alright. I remember being very afraid everytime the siren went off and hearing the German planes overhead. After the war my father came home, I was 13 then and my father was like a stranger it took me ages to get used to having my father again.

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