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Anne Doward nee Tansley
Biography of Ernest Tansley's daughter Anne. Writes of background and family. Gives service history of her father including joining, training in England and the United States and eventual posting to 57 Squadron at RAF Scampton. Writes of her memories…
My recollections of the War - Alan Mann
He reminisces about pre-war and early war days as a schoolboy in Lewisham, recalling events at the beginning of the war. Includes photographs of aircraft and naval ships. He continues with history of events through the war's early years including:…
Interview with Alberto Dini
Alberto Dini recalls his wartime life in Trieste starting from the declaration of war until the end of the conflict. He describes life under the bombs, highlighting disruption of utilities, devastated streets and chequered schooling history. He…
Interview with Paolo Vivoda
Paolo Vivoda remembers a bombing attack which started moments before the stage show of magician Delfo, during which his mother barely made it to the shelter and was injured; others died. Paolo lost contact with his parents, but was reunited with them…
Interview with Alberto Buvoli
Alberto Buvoli recalls his wartime childhood in Udine, where he lived in the railway station area. He describes how furniture was moved to a safer place at the onset of the war and explains air raid precautions, such as leaving the windows open and…
Interview with Inge Nicolis
Inge Nicolis, the daughter of a Swedish engineer faher and an Italian mother, reminisces about her wartime experiences in Milan. She stresses the sense of having been thrown into a tragedy and the anguish of not being able to evacuate Milan, on the…
Interview with Nino Tenca Montini
Nino Tenca Montini reminisces about his wartime experiences in Udine and the Friuli region. He describes the family shelter as a concrete reinforced basement, sparsely furnished with wooden benches. He recalls the urge to escape the vigilance of…
Interview with an eye-witness of Milan bombings
The interviewee describes two bombings in the Sesto San Giovanni and Niguarda areas, which he eye-witnessed. During the first, he was in a basement adapted as underground shelter: he recollects women reciting the rosary and a queasy sensation in the…
Interview with Piero Fiorot
Piero Fiorot reminisces about his pre-war life in Sacile: schooling; fascist paramilitary training and indoctrination; curfews; rationing; and doing business in a tightly controlled, closed economic system. He contrasts the relatively tranquil life…
Interview with Guido Toccacieli
Guido Toccaceri remembers his wartime experiences as a schoolboy in Milan: the day war broke out; food shortages; his father working at an airfield near Bergamo; train strafing; basements used as makeshift shelters; being evacuated outside Milan,…
Interview with Marco Pederielli
Marco Pederielli describes his father’s career as a Regia Aeronautica officer, providing details of his service in North Africa. He describes his personal situation after the fall of the Fascist regime, when he, reluctantly, joined the Aeronautica…
Interview with Ronald Roffey
Ronald was born in Charlton, London. He went to Charlton Junior School and was nine when war was declared. He remembered being fitted for a gas mask at his school. His aunt, who lived in Torquay, found a private billet for him and his mother in…
Interview with Margaret Ottaway
Margaret Ottaway lived in Louth, the sixth of seven children, and tells of her childhood there. She describes an air raid shelter they had in the house. As a seven-year-old, Margaret witnessed an enemy air raid on 19 February 1941, which caused…
Interview with Elizabeth Ann Rogers
Elizabeth's earliest memories include the family’s Anderson shelter, later replaced by a Morrison shelter where she slept during air raids. She recalls the sound of planes overhead and the impact of nearby bombings, including shattered windows and…
Interview with Norman Rutherford. One
Norman Rutherford was born in Cleethorpes in 1931 and remembers as an eight year old child discussing with his cousin as to whether there would be a war. Norman recalls the sound of the air raid sirens and learning his multiplication tables in the…
Interview with Norman Rutherford. Two
Norman Rutherford discusses his schooling during the war and how few male teachers remained. He recollects the scarcity of food and the blackout. As a child he was briefly sent from his home in Cleethorpes to stay with his music teacher at…
Interview with Susan Jones
Sue Jones was born in Manchester. When the mill where she worked closed at the beginning of the war, she went to work for Avro. She worked on Ansons, Manchesters and then Lancasters. She describes the camaraderie on the factory floor. She also found…
Interview with Edith Taylor
Edith Taylor (née Tate) grew up in Manchester and experienced the bombing of Manchester. When the war started, Edith, her mother and two siblings, were evacuated to Leek. Edith and her brother were separated from her mother and sister. They had two…
Interview with Tom and Gabi Wilson
Gabi Wilson grew up in Berlin and was a schoolgirl in 1939. She discusses one of her brothers training as an interpreter and another returning from Russian prisoner of war camps. She worked as an apprentice at a publishers firm. She met her husband,…
Memories and Reminiscences of Bob Sharrock
Bob Sharrock's life story, from childhood until he joined the RAF. He recalls his training and postings to various RAF stations throughout his service. After the war he continued at RAF Credenhill then RAF Kinloss as a flight mechanic. He returned…
Interview with Heather Hindley
Heather Hindley was a young girl living in Nottingham and attending private school when war was declared. She discusses air raids, sleeping in her grandparents’ shelter and rationing. She talks about the experience of moving to the countryside at the…
Interview with Freda Dakin
Born in Salford, just outside of Manchester, Freda was a teenager during the Second World War. She recalls her family's culture, school life, meal requirements and how she reacted to the war being declared. She also recounts her experiences of…
Interview with Betty Hedges
Betty Hedges grew up in South London during the final years before the war and she recalls a happy childhood. She describes a close family and community life where the children played unworried in the streets and she talks about the games they played…
Interview with Joy Joy. One
Joy Joy was evacuated from Hull at the start of the war, returning home for Christmas. She was again evacuated as the bombings began. She took responsibility for her younger sister, although she was only six years old herself, and she says that from…
Interview with Brian and Jenny Bailey
Brian and Jenny Bailey were children during the war and witnessed the bombing of Cleethorpes and Grimsby. Standing on a local bridge, they could also see Hull in flames. Jenny recalled walking with her mother on the day war was declared and seeing a…