大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People鈥檚 War site by Three Counties Action on behalf of Joan Corfield and has been added to the site with her permission. The author fully understands the site鈥檚 terms and conditions.

I was born in Bedford 18th December 1925, war broke out in September 1939. I can vividly re-call hearing on our radio Mr Chamberlain declaring war on Germany.

Our normal everyday way of life changed completely from then on. The black-out came every house had to be completely in total darkness, as did the lights in the streets. Some people put strips of brown paper on their windows to stop the glass shattering if bombed. The air raid wardens were regularly on duty, each street, or road were guarded as it were. I re-call one of my friends father became a regular ARP and a garage in Richmond Road was used as the wardens HQ, for that area. They were on patrol all the day and night. Then men were called up to join the forces as were the women from the age of 18. My eldest brother was called up in 1940 and became an RAF pilot. He was killed in August 1941. My youngest brother joined the RAF in 1942 after leaving Bedford school. He survived the war. I joined the Royal Observer Corps in 1943 just before my 18th birthday. I plotted all aircraft flying over a wide area, to the Cambridge boarder, north Northants, all of Bedfordshire, parts of Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and as far as Chipping Norton to the West. Each plotter (of which I was one) took information from 3 outposts 2 men were always on duty on the outposts constantly on shift work throughout the war 鈥� the Royal Observer Corps were known as the Eyes and Ears of the RAF as from the HQ where I worked, all aircraft movements were tracked and the information forwarded by phone (head sets) used by H.Q., staff to Fighter Command. I worked 48 hours a week on different shifts of 8 hours a shift i.e., 4 to midnight, back at 8 next morning till 4, then 4 to midnight then a break. The Air Raid warnings were sent from the H.Q., the whole country was covered by the Royal Observer Corps. The men and some women were on duty out in the open all weather and all through enemy action. At night the Observer would know which aircraft they heard as they all became very knowledgeable over the sounds as well as the daylight recognition by sight. A means of detecting their height and position was made by quite accurate plotting on a round table also information they gave us at H.Q., the name and height, and we had means of working out the exact position on our tables. We used the British modified grid system. We had a long range board also that extended a long distance over the country, it was worked by plotters sitting alongside the upright map just listening in and being able to plot them on the magnetic plaque, showing the type of aircraft and height etc, so we were 鈥淔orewarned and Forearmed鈥� as the R.O.C. motto was.

Very little was ever mentioned of the R.O.C. as it was tightly secret. We obviously were never allowed to discuss with anyone what we did. We were told six months before the Doodlebugs (pilotless aircraft) were going to come as we had to be prepared.

The men who worked both indoors and out on the posts were mainly above calling-up age and worked in offices, etc, they were part-time probably on a 4 hour a day or night basis, some on longer shifts. The WAAFs from R.A.F. Cardington were called in to help as we were so short of H.Q., staff. They had busses to take them on duty 鈥� and the busses picked the R.O.C. members for going on duty at various places. As I lived in Bushmead Avenue I only had to walk to the end by Goldington Road where several of us picked the transport up. It was rather scary walking in pitch darkness and waiting for transport. I was always glad to see the others so didn鈥檛 have to wait alone.

I can re-call hearing the German aircraft 鈥榙rone鈥� over Bedford on their way to bomb Coventry 鈥� and often on their return they would release a few bombs, I know our garden had a couple of incendiary bombs which lit the whole area up. A number of properties were quite badly damaged that night. We had a business in Bedford called Laxtons, they had a nursery for plants, apple trees, etc, on the corner of Goldington Road and Newnham Avenue 鈥� their shop on the corner next door to a chemist in the High Street opposite where Debenhams is now, Mr Laxton senior was on Warden Duty he lived in Putnoe Lane and sadly he and another Air Raid Warden were killed by a bomb in Putnoe Lane.

Bedford became home to the 大象传媒 Symphony and Theatre Orchestras during the war. Their H.Q. was the two hotels in Bushmead Avenue 鈥淭he Kingsley鈥� and the 鈥淐avendish鈥� hotels (now in flats). They broadcasted from the Corn Exchange mainly 鈥� the Theatre Orchestra from the Granada Cinema 鈥� I can recall queuing for tickets for their broadcasts. The music and singers were the tops, we all know Glen Miller was in Bedford. The Americans had their officers club built where the St Peters Tennis Club was at the bottom of Kimbolton Road and Goldington Road. Many famous American film stars came over to entertain their men at Thurleigh etc, where the American Air bases were situated in this area.

I could continue many little stories during the war 鈥� the comradeship and spirit of the British people was everyone working together and helping each other. A friend of our mother was killed driving an Ambulance during the blitz in London 鈥� she went there to help. Another friend, a girl in her 20鈥檚 killed ferrying aircraft she had a pilots licence and lived in Bedford. We had friends who had a small boat he and his Father went straight to Dunkirk bringing the troops back, at that time even a few at a time saved their lives. However small a boat everyone took it over to rescue whom they could in France from the beaches.
I can recall a whole battalion of soldiers came to Bedford I think from France and used Russell Park as their base 鈥� the officers came to residents locally asking how many they could house temporarily 鈥� we had 4 Scottish boys till they remobilised for battle elsewhere after about a week. I can remember feeling quite hungry at times 鈥� we were rationed I recall 2oz butter per person per week 鈥� and likewise for other things. We had chips and eggs all the time 鈥� delicious too when not much else around. Chips cooked in fat never did me any harm. My Mother put eggs down in 鈥済lass鈥� a sort of liquid they kept in. No one could have eaten more chips than I did 鈥� luckily to this day they never did me any harm. If friends called, that is what they had to eat 鈥� everyone loved them! Sometimes I鈥檓 quite amused at all these dieticians and writers of food what to eat. We had no refrigerators in those days, our food I think was wholesome no added things to preserve except possibly Jam.

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