- Contributed byÌý
- Genevieve
- People in story:Ìý
- Roy Taylor
- Location of story:Ìý
- Southsea, Portsmouth
- Background to story:Ìý
- Civilian
- Article ID:Ìý
- A7451039
- Contributed on:Ìý
- 01 December 2005
The Egg Custard, or a Lucky Coincidence
Let me set the scene. It is 1941, at the start of the Blitz, the 10th of January. The place is Southsea in Portsmouth near the railway lines at Fratton. Our family consisted of my dad George, my mum Rene, my elder sister Muriel, and I am Roy who had his 5th birthday a few months earlier. Dad worked as a printer and travelled daily to Gosport, and in the evening served as a member of the ARP, that much maligned band of people who are so badly served by the TV image.
On this particular evening during which the air raid warning had sounded, we had finished our tea and Dad was talking about going on duty, but Mum said that Dad was to have his egg custard before he left as she had made it especially for him. At that time fresh eggs were in short supply in the City. Dad dutifully ate his pudding and, while he was eating, two loud explosions suddenly shook the house and it was remarked that ‘they were close’. Having finished his pudding, off he went.
From conversations afterwards it appeared that one of the explosions was a bomb that destroyed the ARP Post that Dad would have been in. At least one Warden was killed and one buried for a long time. Dad would not talk about this incident or any other subsequent events. But thanks to the egg custard, his life had been saved.
We remained in Southsea for the duration and suffered damage to our house, but that is another story. The story of the incident of the Egg Custard remained buried as a memory only to be revived by the history projects programme.
With the help of my sister and the assistance of the Portsmouth Museum Record Office, who hold a map and index of the bomb falls on the City, I was able to locate the Wardens’ Post involved.
This story was collected by T. Greene and submitted to the People’s War site by Graham Brown of the ´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio Shropshire CSV Action Desk on behalf of Roy Taylor and has been added to the site with his permission. The author fully understands the site’s terms and conditions.
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