大象传媒

This story was submitted to the Peoples War site by Sami Qasem from 大象传媒 London, on behalf of Peter Toms and has been added to this site with his permission. Peter Toms fully understands the sites terms and conditions.

I was born in 1938, the youngest of seven children. My father was a stableman working for the LMS Railway. My mother was a cleaner for the middle classes. We lived in Princess Road, NW1, a few doors away from what is now the Trendy Engineers pub, but in those days it was a very working class area.

When the war started we were evacuated to a village called great Oakley in Northamptonshire. On arrival all the families were gathered in the village hall to be allocated their temporary homes. We were the last family left because my mother would not allow us to be separated but there was nobody with a home large enough to take us.

Lord Brooke, the local Lord of the Manor, came to see how things were progressing an he was told of our families problem. He said that we would have to come stay at the manor house. We were there for between 4 to 6 months. I was a baby and do not remember this part but was told that the maids and butlers used to play cricket with my brothers and sisters in the grounds.

Apparently, Lord Brooke often complained to my mother that she was using too much hot water to bather is and there was not enough left for him.

After that period we all cam back to London for a while but later on we returned and were split up within the village of Great Oakley, between carious families.

Some four years ago, my sister, from her home in New York, and another from her home in Perth, Australia, were visiting our sister in Newbury, Berkshire, and decided to take a trip to Great Oakley. Standing outside the manor house recalling old memories a man appeared on a horse. He introduced himself as Lord Brooke, the grandson of the Lord Brooke we had stayed with. When they explained who they were he recalled having heard stories about the London family that had stayed in their home. He took them up to the manor house and showed them around while they told him of their memories.

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