Browse Items (642 total)

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AAn00202-150907.mp3
He was born in London and worked for some time as a clerk until joined up the Royal Air Force. He did not like the idea of serving in the Army or in the Navy but - as a Londoner - he was keen to take part in the war having experienced the Blitz. He…

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PNorringtonAW2201.jpg
John Norrington was a lorry driver when he volunteered for the Royal Air Force. After initial training, he went to RAF Sandtoft on Lancasters and Halifaxes; he crewed up with Flying Officer James, then was at RAF Hemswell for the Lancaster Finishing…

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AOrmorodJ170207.mp3
John Ormerod left school at 14 and worked in the textile industry before he volunteered for RAF. At first he trained as flight mechanic but later remustered to be a flight engineer. He talks about synchronising props and the German speaking eighth…

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PParkerWC1505.jpg
Charles Parker was part of the Fast Night Striking Force of Number 8 Group, Pathfinder Squadron in Bomber Command, flying in Mosquitos.
He tells of ‘crewing up’ in September 1943 as a 21 year old, and also his near miss with a Mosquito from 1409…

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ARayWBJ161126.mp3
Joan Ray was born in Doncaster on the 11th March 1925.
Joan suffered problems with her eyes in her early life and tells of the impact it had on her life, including problems with reading and writing.
She spent time in domestic service, working at…

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PReddishDE1709.jpg
Doris Reddish attended Sleaford High School followed by commercial college. She worked at Moore, Cooper and Burkett’s in Market Rasen until she joined the Royal Observer Corps. She trained in Lincoln for aircraft recognition then served as a table…

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PViolletW1602.jpg
Warrant Officer Bill Viollet was born in Reigate in Surrey in 1921, the second oldest of 4 boys. His brother Bob joined the Royal Air Force and Bill wanted to follow him into the service.
Bill wanted to be aircrew so he trained as a wireless…

PWalkerWE1601.jpg
Wilberforce Emmanuel Walker, known as Danny, was born in Jamaica and he joined the Royal Air Force in June 1944.
After becoming a Junior Clerk at the Post Office in Jamaica, Danny arrived in England in 1944 was based in Filey in Yorkshire, where he…

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AWarrenH160325.mp3
Interview in which he describes joining the RAF in 1938 and worked as ground crew. After training in Canada, he became a flight engineer and worked on Sunderlands flying from RAF Greenock.

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AWarrenHJ160506.mp3
Continuing of interview with H J Warren. Includes descriptions of encountering submarines when flying from RAF Greenock.

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AWatsonJ150904.mp3
Joan Watson went to Bracebridge School and then worked at Ruddock’s of Lincoln as a printer. Joan discusses evacuees, the bombing war, home font (local men doing fire watching at work), and social life in wartime: dancing, cinema and gatherings.…

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AGilbertAC161013.mp3
Alexander Gilbert, DFC, joined the Royal Air Force in November 1940, and was called forward for service on the 7th April 1941, rising to the rank of Squadron Leader. Alex had a very long and varied career for the Royal Air Force.
Upon his call up,…

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PPeadonAH1605.jpg
Sybil was born in Bracebridge near Lincoln, she went to Bracebridge School then left at fourteen to work first at a Co-op store and then at and electric shop. Sybil talks about civilian life in wartime, her family working at Foster Quinns, fire…

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AHardingV150520.mp3
An oral history interview with Leading Aircraftsman Victor Harding.

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PHildrethJ1502.jpg
Jeff Hildreth was born in Huntwood, Derbyshire and studied Electrical Engineering at Worksop Technical College before joining the Air Training Corp, before eventually joining the Royal Air Force as a Wireless Operator.
He did his training at…

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PHildrethJ1502.jpg
Jeff Hildreth grew up in a colliery village where his father was a miner. When he left school he started working at a tailor’s shop. He didn’t enjoy working in the shop and was happy to volunteer for the RAF and was accepted for to train as a…

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AHookerFJ160525.mp3

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PJohnsonKA1507.jpg
Kenneth Alfred Johnson joined the Royal Air Force at the age of 19, after being in a reserved occupation making barrage balloon cables. He trained as an air gunner, serving as a mid-upper gunner.
He had a spell at the Operational Training Unit,…

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PJohnsonKA1507.jpg
Ken Johnson was born in Doncaster. At the start of the war the family was living in Sheffield but his father decided they should move back to Doncaster to avoid bombing. Ken started work as a joiner and later made cables for barrage balloons. Despite…

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PKirbyH1511.jpg
Harold Kirby joined up the Royal Air Force encouraged by two friends, but ended up training as a flight mechanic at RAF Halton on medical grounds. Harold became them airframe fitter, volunteered as a flight engineer, passed the physical but was then…

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PLeedhamA1601.jpg
Alma Leedham grew up in London and worked for Hawker aircraft on the Hurricane at the start of the war . She later trained as a driver in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force. She served at RAF Scampton driving tractors taking bombs to the aircraft.…

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AKirkDJB150610.mp3
Dennis Kirk was born in 1920, to farming parents, in the village of Barkestone in Nottinghamshire. He says that he didn’t want to be a farmer but when he left school he had to work on the farm. When the war started he wanted to join up but because…

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ALambournJP170112.mp3

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PPattersonGE1502.jpg

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PSimpsonF1704.jpg
Frank Simpson was born in Manchester and volunteered to be an air gunner after joining the RAF. He flew in ‘Ollie’s Bus’ which was named after the Canadian pilot. He describes seeing the German aircraft with the Schrage Musik, the upward firing…

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