大象传媒

This story was added to the People's War site by a volunteer from 大象传媒 Newcastle on behalf of Mary Charlton. Mary Charlton fully understands the site's terms and conditions and the story has been added to the sire with her permission.

"'Aunt Nellie' is staying with us. She had bow legs with funny blotches. She says its from sitting too close to the fire. She has a pilot in the RAF. "The Few" Churchill calls them. He has big fur boots and a funny hat. He lets me wear them. He gives me two model planes - one a Spitfire and the other a Stuka. I smash that one. That felt good until afterwards - it was just a toy.

Dad's back! But I'm sure he'll leave again. Like before. Why can't he stay? Betty Henderson's Dad is here all the time. It's not fair. It makes Mum cry.

I'm home. I'm sick. Some big kid swapped me my Dad's knife for something he said I wanted. I don't want it anymore. How will I tell my Dad? Big kids are rotten. I'm stupid, stupid, stupid!

I had my first kiss. I'm going to marry Betty Henderson. We'll live in the air raid shelter.

"We've smashed the hun" Churchill says. "Our men can come home". Except my Dad. He's gone to fight someone else. It's not fair. Does he have to do everything?

We had to take a can to school. No one said why, but Mam got a note. I wasn't in trouble this time and the school nurse didn't find dickies in my hair and me Mam is happy. It's cocoa! A can for every kid and apples! From 'Canada', part of the empire. Honest! I didn't get as many apples as our Margaret or the other kids on the street. Honest! "I don't feel well".

There is a tent in the space on Shields Road where a bomb dropped. It's a funny yellow with a white circle round a red cross. Women outside in blue and white stopping everyone. They make them go inside the tent. It's a big tent. Our Margaret says they take blood for our boys. I'm not going on Shields Road until the tent is gone.

Me and Margaret have Fresh Egg. Mam said "Don't ask". We had to cut the top off and dip in soldiers. It was yellow in the middle and white around and didn't taste like regular canned eggs!

We had chicken for Christmas. It was in a can but it had little arms and leg things and tasted much better than spam.

The Rington's tea man is in the back lane (that's where we live) We play "doors". Each kid has a door. You can score a door on anybody's door except your own. I'm too little to have a door but Richie Keith says I can be on his side. Some big kids are good. He sticks up for me. I think he wants to marry our Margaret. Anyway, the tea man is here. His coach is black and gold. His horse shines, his harness is polished and has real silver in it. Honest, it was wonderful!

Me Mam gives him our ration books. He gives her some tea, and then he looks round and gives her some coupons. There is a black market. I've never seen it but our Margaret knows. Me Mam says some people have more money than sense. She has mouths to feed and kids to clothe. We don't need much tea or sweets, whatever they are. Our Margaret says that's what used to be in the empty machines at the station. After the War when Dad's home we can get some. Everything is "after the war". Our Margaret's going in the Land Army and I'm going in the marines, but we have to go to school first.

It's Friday and the fishman is in the lane. He's not like the tea man - him and his horse and cart smell - but fish isn't rationed, not really. He's an old man, he wears medals and he won't let people be greedy. "There's a war on and more streets than Corbridge Street. But you've got kids missus. You can't be picky". Cod, herring, whatever they can sneak out and catch.

We had a cat. Her name was Queenie. Lovely white fur. She's gone missing. Me Mam says she's found someplace better.

It's near Christmas. We're going to a pantomime, a British tradition. The "hero", Robin Hood, Aladdin, Dick Whittington, is played by a woman. The mother (there's always a mother) is played by a man. He's funny, "she" has long legs and a short jacket. But halfway through this show, Queenie, our cat strolls across the stage and steals the scene. If you lose your cat it's good to know she's made the big time.

Sometime you wish you could change things. There's a big kid down the street. His Dad's away and he is not old. he wanted me to play with him. I don't like him but he told me about his train set. It's true! A train set, all around the room - station crossings, animals, trees, men. Men! I leave with one of these in my pocket. It burns. I bury it in a neighbour's ash bin, I am ashamed of myself. I am 65 years old. It still burns inside. Needless to say, I never went back. Whose loss? Mine, of course. A moral there.

There's a monkey on our windowsill. We feed it. It bites me. I have to get a shot. The moneky's gone.

All the men are at sea. Uncle Tommy's wife came to see us sometimes. She's a big woman, she looks tough. Big hands with yellow fingers. But she plays boogie-woogie!

After Uncle Tommy came home, we went to visit. They were funny. June and Stella were like their Mam. Poor Uncle Tommy. Things were still scarce and, for curtains they had a huge German navy swastika that Uncle Tommy had rescued. It was like on the set of a Hitler movie.

Speaking of rescued me Dad always had something for me - a German helmet among other things. But they always wound up in the hands of some rotten big kid. Stupid, stupid.

The war's over! Dad's home! It's a bit crowded in our house. Another baby, Clare - all curly blonde hair and chubby cheeks. We have one bedroom. Mam and Dad in one bed. Our Margaret, Mary and Clare in another and I sleep in a crib with the bars broken out at the bottom. I still have scars on my shins from sleepless nights when I would cut them on the broken ends as I tossed and turned. We have a living room. There is a sofa, table and chairs and a sideboard. The sofa has to be pushed back when Mam is cooking. We have a scullery with a sink. There is a small gas stove, but Mam does most of the cooking on a range and a stove in the living room. There is a toilet in the back yard, but we don't have to share like some poor souls.

They cleared the beaches of landmines, tank traps and barbed wire. What we had was a feast. About four years of uninterrupted growth for shellfish, crab, shrimp, mussles and winkles- winkles as big as golf balls. You didn't need a pin to de-winkle, you needed a spear!

Sweets came off rations and our Margaret was right. All those empty machines at the stations were now full of chocolate, long gone since my first taste of cocoa. I was spoiled with my pocket money. I could buy sweets or soft drinks - Dandelion and Burdock. I could drink it till my belly swelled. Years later in a shop I had to buy a bottle. I couldn't stand the stuff!"

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