- Contributed by听
- Peoples War Team in the East Midlands
- People in story:听
- Betty Wragg (nee Thomson)
- Location of story:听
- Nottingham
- Article ID:听
- A4758294
- Contributed on:听
- 04 August 2005
"This story was submitted to the site by the 大象传媒's Peoples War Team in the East Midlands with Betty Wraggs permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions."
My boyfriend went in the 8th army, we were engaged at the time and married in 1940. I had a phone call to say he was coming home the day before we got married. He was on 48 hour leave and we arranged everything in that short space of time. Everything had been prepared just in case, we just needed to get the vicar and make the buffet. He came back home a fortnight later on a 48 hour pass and the next time I saw him was in January 1945. He was a desert rat.
In 1941 I joined the WAAF just after West Bridgford was bombed and went straight away to Cramwell barracks. It was a training station but I was with 21 group HQ and we lodgers with the lodger unit. Eventually, after two years we moved to Spittle Gate in Grantham. I worked as a clark and on a whole had a lovely time.
When off duty we went in the local pub with the lads and had a nice time. I met a friend who lived in Nottingham there and we were friends when she got married and then later in life when she died.
My uncle and brother both served. They kept in touch and we also kept in touch with the girls we met. My brother was a mine sweeper in the Navy on the channel.
In the WAAF we had a corporal and an officer who looked pretty much the same. One day the officer stuck his head round the door and a girl hit it with a pencil thinking it was the corporal when it was the officer.
My husband in North Africa then moved into Sicily. Then Italy. He drove a heavy goods vehicle towing a gun and they pulled into one of the camps. An officer came up to him and would you believe that even with all those people there he was a friend from Nottingham.
While in the WAAF I used to take a friend home for her passes. Her mum used to put us up, feed us and let us have a bath.
When my husband returned he was very different after all those years away.
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