大象传媒

This story has been submitted by Margaret Payne of the Lancashire Home Guard on behalf of Gladys & Bill Ludgrove and has been added to the site with their permission.

I started off as a DEMS Gunner and when the Atlantic war was over, I was transferred back to the aircraft carrier and finished the war 1944-46 on the Burma coast and Burma.

My wife and I were evacuated together at 13 years of age in Brighton 鈥� that鈥檚 when we met, and that is when I asked her to marry me 鈥� we were school teachers together in Brighton. During this time as teachers, we had to look after our siblings. I had three sisters and a brother, and my wife had one sister and one brother, all younger than ourselves, plus we had to look after other children. After Dunkirk, we went back to London and we were school leaving age, so we had to get a job. We were separated for a while, but eventually I borrowed a handcart, put my younger sister aged 2) in it and walked back to London! It took me three days to walk from Brighton to London. When your mum said look after the kids, that鈥檚 what you did. Going back to the bombing, both my wife and I were bombed out of our houses 鈥� we weren鈥檛 married then 鈥� when you were bombed out of your home, you were rehoused in abandoned houses which were close together. I lived four doors along from my future wife.

I joined the Navy at 16 years old and went to war. I came back two years later and we got married. During this time, my wife had also joined the forces as a Nurse in the Voluntary Aid Division. She served the war in Cadogdon Square in London SW1. During the day she looked after prisoners of war, the wounded and did hospital duties during the evening at Shooter鈥檚 Hill Army Hospital. I was at sea at this time on a merchant ship which took part in the Sicily landing along with Danish Ships, British Gunners & American cargo. We delivered to the Americans in various stages up the coast of Italy. When we were finished, our ship returned to North Africa, where we loaded again with American supplies. I caught malaria and came home. My wife and I were married in 1944 and did 7 months in Portsmouth retraining, then went back into the Royal Navy and boarded an aircraft carrier HMS Trumpeter, and took this down to the Burma coast. Did fighting in Rangoon; we were put ashore at Port Sweatenan because we had sea fires on board ship which could take off from an aircraft carrier but couldn鈥檛 get back on 鈥� it had to land ashore. We were sent to prepare an airfield, so they could land, but the big bomb had fallen on Hiroshima, but the Japanese were still fighting. They continued fighting until halfway through 1946. I was then relieved and taken to Trincamele which was then in Ceylon (now known Sri Lanka). I spent a month in hospital, joined HMS Falmouth 鈥� she鈥檇 done service in the Persian Gulf chasing Gunners. Christmas 1946 I arrived back in England as the war was over. I have been happily married for 61 years, produced an Olympic swimmer and world record holder, the last world record swimmer and world record holder was achieved at the Derby Baths in Blackpool, and this record hasn鈥檛 been broken as it was done in YARDS! Now only metric world records are done 鈥� 110 鈥� 220 yards backstroke 鈥� our daughter, Linda Ludgrove, has her own website! Our son is a Consultant Anaesthetist in London, so haven鈥檛 we done well!! Very proud to be able to tell this story.

My wife and I used to do our courting in some air raid shelters under some London allotments. The bunks were three high so we used to hold hands over the top!
The toilet was an old bucket in a corner of the bunker 鈥� everybody heard you! The ladies held off going to the loo until they heard the siren 鈥� giving the 鈥渁ll clear鈥�. When a lady got up to go to the toilet, all the other ladies used to start to sing!

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