大象传媒

I was 24 in 1939 and we were on holiday in the Isle of Man when war broke out. We had to pack up immediately because the holiday camp was taken over straight away by the Forces and we weren't able to come home via Fleetwood but had to come home through the port of Liverpool.

Liverpool was a big shock for us - when we arrived everyone was carrying gas masks and gas mask cases. Before war broke out I had been sewing and examining these cases for the textile company Tootal, Broadbent and Lee in Bolton where I worked but I had never known what they were designed for.

We took the train back to Bolton and I went back to work. A lot of the girls joined up - but they were 18 and I was a little bit older and by the time they got round to calling up 24 year olds I was in a reserved occupation. I understood fabric so I was examining parachute cloth - it was a silky fabric and you had to hold it up to the light to check it wasn't damaged, It had to be perfect - it was used for barrage balloons that floated over the cities.

I remember the blackout. We had to walk home in the dark after our shifts had ended.We always walked in the middle of the road and shone a torch down onto the ground. It was really frightening. You could hear footsteps behind you but you couldn't see the person.

There was no such thing as a fat person - we were all very slim. But we didn't feel deprived even though we didn't have much - We never threw anything away - I remember my mother buying a big tin of stewing steak and skimming off the fat on top to make pastry. We had lots of vegetables because some good friends had an allotment - we were also friends with the grocer - it was a bit like a little black market, I suppose. Rationing went on till 1952.

In 1942 I lost my boyfriend - he was in the Air Force and he worked at Cranwell. He inhaled dangerous fumes from the aircraft engines. It gave him chest trouble which developed into pneumonia. He died - but his parents never received any compensation.

Three years later in 1945 the Mayor of Bolton held a Ball. It was some time between VE Day and VJ Day. Some of the girls from our firm were invited and I went along. I liked to dance and met a very good dancer. We got married - but it was a big mistake - it was love on the rebound.

The best thing I got from my marriage was my son - and he is still wonderful to me today.

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