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15 October 2014
WW2 - People's War

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Life & Leisure in the WAAF

by CSV Media NI

Contributed by听
CSV Media NI
People in story:听
Leah McConnell
Location of story:听
UK
Background to story:听
Royal Air Force
Article ID:听
A4209789
Contributed on:听
17 June 2005

[entertainment]
You never got off the camp. VERY seldom you could get a pass to go into the nearest village or town or whatever. You had to book out, you had to book in, you had to be back by 10 o鈥檆lock, 11 o鈥檆lock, whatever the thing was. If you were caught out after that you would be on a charge. They were very strict, terribly strict. Not near like that nowadays.

[dispensations for being women?]
Not one bit! They were far worse. The senior officers, they just howled at you. And if you were on parade, which we did every morning of life. You were wakened at 6 o鈥檆lock by the tannoy, and you went and got your breakfast and went on parade on the parade ground. And if you had your hair touching your collar, you were on a charge. And she鈥檇 shout at you 鈥淕raham, get that hair off your collar!鈥 really rough. And the next morning you had to have that hair 鈥 They were very hard on us, very hard. But it was all a part of our training. And when I look back on it, sure it was all fun.
I made lots of friends. I still have 2 very good friends, 1 in Canada and 1 in New Zealand. And we keep in touch every Xmas. Xmas card and a letter.

Both the ladies I am in touch with were both from Ireland. But then one went to Canada and she鈥檚 come back to see us and visit us. And the other lady in New Zealand. It鈥檚 wonderful how you make friends and keep them. [even] After 60 years.

[on leave]
I usually came home when I got leave. If you had a week or longer, you came home. You were glad to get home for a wee break, you know?
We had an old, what you鈥檇 call a Cinema in the camp. It was horrible. It was only an old nissan hut, they put on a few wee pictures to keep us happy. You didn鈥檛 go too often.

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