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This interview was done by Zarina, who spoke to Margaret in the Rushey Mead Manor Residential home, where Margaret lives. It has been added to the Website with her permission, and she understands the website鈥檚 terms and conditions.

I spoke to Margaret, who is 83 years old, and lives in the Rushey Mead Manor residential home. When the war started she was 18 years old, and everyone was appointed a job and hers was to work in a laboratory with 3 other girls. Her dad worked in the aircraft service industry, and she had one brother who was an architect, but he fought in the war and came back alive.

She remembers the war being announced on the radio, and how frightened everyone was. A bomb dropped a few yards away from her house in Syston.

She also has memories of rationing books with tokens for clothes, food and toiletries. Many women did not wear fashionable clothes and tights (stockings) because of the rationing and they needed to buy more important things. If you could get it, it was possible to make a wedding dress out of white parachute silk

She told us about the blackout and power failures as well as not being allowed to leave lights on in case the enemy pilots could see any tiny cracks of light. They all had to carry torches and gas masks and hide in air raid shelters when the planes came over.

After the war they had lots of street parties.

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