大象传媒

1995 Marked the 50th Anniversary of the End of World War II

By Joan Stokoe

All the celebrations that were being planned to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the end of World War II made me think of the real end of the war in Europe. Nothing could ever compare with that.
I was twelve years old and for weeks of perhaps it had been months, people seemed to be so much brighter in their conversations, and had more spring in their steps. Everyone was speculating that peace was in sight.
I was sitting on the bus, on my way home from school in the Newcastle area when it stopped at Wideopen to pick up a passenger. It was a lady who climbed on and stood beside the driver and announced;
鈥淭he war鈥檚 over, the Germans surrendered this afternoon.鈥�
There was a moment of silence and then excitement erupted, everyone was talking to everyone else. When I left the bus, I couldn鈥檛 reach home soon enough to tell my mother the news, but she already knew and told me that it was still unofficial because the surrender was not to be signed until the following afternoon.
However, this deterred no one. All who were able to were outside, meals forgotten, nobody was interested in food.
The whole world seemed to be on the move. Where to? Who cared? You just went with the throng. A happy, excited, ecstatic, elated noisy throng. No one could hear what was being said to them because everyone was talking and singing and shouting to friends they saw in the crowd and over the road. My parents and sister and myself walked to my grandparent鈥檚 house at the other end of the town. I don鈥檛 know why, we just did. Well you had to go somewhere once you were out. We stayed with them for a while and then had to be on the move again so we set out for home.
There were even more people now, thousands of them in the main street, and then we saw my brother in his RAF uniform with some friends. Oh! We were so happy now, we were all together. Apparently the armed forces had all been given an immediate forty eight hour leave.
It was dark by now but we could all see because you didn鈥檛 need to keep your torch dimmed any longer, in case of being spotted by enemy planes. We were all shining them anywhere we wanted to.
The euphoria was so great that by now that no one could stop. We all went home together, and the neighbours were all out in the street, singing and dancing, without any music. When they saw my brother with us, they all shouted 鈥� We need some music, Harry, we鈥檒l help you carry your piano outside,鈥� and that is what they did. He played music on the piano and everyone danced and sang for what seemed like hours until eventually we were all worn out and returned to our homes and. I suppose, bed.
The following morning we were still high with sheer happiness. I think a public holiday must have been declared for that day because no one seemed to go to work and certainly the children didn鈥檛 attend school. Word was passed along the street that there was to be a meeting of mothers in one of the homes to plan a street party to be held that afternoon. My brother and his friends were allocated the job of keeping the children occupied whilst the women baked and prepared the party.
Harry had a German helmet that he had acquired in France, so they decided to dress one of them as Hitler. Joe drew the short straw and had to wear it, an army jacket turned inside out and a moustache smudged from soot completed the costume. My mother鈥檚 clothes line served as a rope to tie him, and the rest of it was long enough for about fifty children to pull him. They took him outside and collected all the kids, who grabbed a hold on the rope and off we went. They took us, dragging 鈥楬itler鈥�, up Alexandra Road, along Woodhorn Road and around the streets of Hirst and Ashington. We collected more children on the way 鈥� I don鈥檛 know how many, but it was a very long procession. As we returned to Alexandra Road, they decided to tie 鈥楬itler鈥� to a lamppost halfway down the road. He had to climb almost half way up it and there they tied him very securely, and to his horror they left him there and took all of us back home to wash and change for the party. Then they returned to rescue poor 鈥楬itler鈥� and brought him back to join us.
Before we sat down for our tea, out parents told us that we must spend a few minutes thinking of the forces whose war was not yet over, those still fighting the Japanese in the Middle and Far East, and this we did.
We then had a wonderful party. After the tea, out came the piano again and we sang and danced all night again.
No, nothing can compare with the spontaneous celebrations of the end of World War II, and this was just the beginning of them.

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