大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People's War site by Sarah Blackaby, a volunteer from CSV Action Desk on behalf of Mrs Blackaby and has been added to the site with her permission. Mrs Blackaby fully understands the site's terms and conditions

During the War, I lived in Potters Barr, which was then in Middlesex and worked in a grocer鈥檚 shop in Barnet. I remember having to get up in the night and go to the air-raid shelter in our garden. I remember hearing the bombs dropping on London during the night. Sometimes they fell on Barnet and I found that, when I got to work the next day, I would see all the shops had shattered glass, and men would be sweeping up the glass. I used to hate that sound. We would work all day with no glass in the windows but they were always replaced very quickly.

I got married in 1942. Clothing was rationed and I could not buy a wedding dress. I borrowed one from Molly, my sister-in-law. We did all our own catering for the wedding, and managed to get some ham. We were allowed some extra food coupons because we were getting married.

For our honeymoon we went to Swanage in Dorset. I remember the beach was all circled with barbed wire to stop the Germans from landing. But they took the barbed wire away for an hour each day so we could sit on the beach for a while. My husband Bill went for a swim in the sea one day, even though it was October!

The rations were very strict. We were encouraged by the Government to dig up our lawns and grow vegetables. It was called Dig for Victory. We used to go to the Council offices to get our ration books. When you bought things in the shop, they would mark off what you had had. Some things like sugar were in very short supply. My family had a choice of going without sugar in tea or without puddings. We decided to go without sugar in tea. Ever since than I do not have sugar in my tea.

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