大象传媒

When war broke out I was working in Lloyds the chemist in Silver Street, Edmonton, London. My sister and I lived in the flat above.

I had instructions if I was in the shop alone when the sirens went I had to lock up the shop, take the money from the till, and go to the shelter in the back garden. Of course this happened very often.

My boss had to do A.R.P. duty and in those days we had to open extra hours in the evening, 7-9 pm surgery hours. If it was something simple on the prescription I dispensed it myself, if not the patients had to come back the next day. Quite scary at 20 years old with air raids and blackouts. I certainly wouldn鈥檛 do it today.

On one occasion Jerry started releasing cannister bombs which floated down by parachute. One I can remember, the parachute became entangled around the chimney pot and we had to get out whilst it was being dealt with. Fortunately no-one was hurt.

I married in Silver Street Edmonton in 1940 and Malcolm was born in 1942. He was born next door to the Woolwich Arsenal. I developed plural fever and was kept in for three weeks. Needless to say it was three weeks of continuous bombings.

My husband and I rented a house in Sidcup Kent. At that time my army pay was 28/- per week and my rent was 24/-.Clothes were on coupon and people were always asking me to make a blouse out of their husband鈥檚 shirts, or children鈥檚 leggonnette suits out of velvet curtains. I think I received 3/- for making a blouse and I thought I was in heaven. By this time Malcolm was about two years old. My elderly neighbours were marvellous to me and insisted as the sirens went I wrapped Malcolm in a blanket and got into their shelter.We had an ack ack gun behind us and in the morning we would pick up pieces of shrapnel from the shells.
Jerry started sending over the "V2" rockets and I remember one of the first ones falling in Eltham S.E. London. Malcolm was on the toilet at the time wearing his father鈥檚 bowler hat. It blew the bathroom window out and needless to say Malcolm left pretty sharpish.

It goes without saying that the Woolwich Barracks etc were a very vulnerable area and it was protected by a ring of barrage balloons, quite a sight. Of course fruit, bananas, oranges etc were virtually non existent. Suddenly the rumour would go around that there were bananas at the Black Fen shop. Seems crazy now, doesn鈥檛 it?

Malcolm鈥檚 father and I belonged to a social club in Palmers Green. We would go to a dance there if he was on leave. Then one night he was recalled suddenly and the club had a direct hit--does one call that fate?

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