1
25
11
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/2198/40507/MAnkersonR[Ser -DoB]-180129-630001.jpg
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Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Royal Air Force ex-Prisoner of War Association
Description
An account of the resource
97 items. The collection concerns Royal Air Force ex-Prisoner of War Association and contains items including drawings by the artist Ley Kenyon.
The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Robert Ankerson and catalogued by Barry Hunter.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2018-01-29
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
RAF ex POW As Collection
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
The Great Escape from Stalag Luft III
Description
An account of the resource
An account of the Great Escape with maps, sketches and photographs. Details of the three tunnels are set out and the night of the escape. The tunnel construction is detailed as is the team of organisers, engineers, escape kit manufacturers and forgers. Finally there is a poster warning prisoners of war not to try escaping.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
FS Kev Hannaford "Dick" Head
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1944-03-24
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
United States Army Air Force
Wehrmacht. Luftwaffe
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Artwork
Text. Personal research
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Five printed sheets
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
MAnkersonR[Ser#-DoB]-180129-630001, MAnkersonR[Ser#-DoB]-180129-630002, MAnkersonR[Ser#-DoB]-180129-630003, MAnkersonR[Ser#-DoB]-180129-630004, MAnkersonR[Ser#-DoB]-180129-630005
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Poland
Poland--Żagań
aircrew
Distinguished Service Cross
Distinguished Service Order
escaping
evading
Goering, Hermann (1893-1946)
Hitler, Adolf (1889-1945)
Military Cross
prisoner of war
Red Cross
Stalag Luft 3
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1895/35867/SGillK1438901v30084.1.jpg
39e45699285f41ae1f82a8ad44443b0b
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Gill, Kenneth
K Gill
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-07-09
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Gill, K
Description
An account of the resource
One hundred and sixty-four items plus another one hundred and fifteen in two sub-ciollections. The collection concerns Flying Officer Kenneth Gill DFC (1922 - 1945, 1438901, 155097 Royal Air Force) and contains his log book, documents, photographs and family and other correspondence. <br />He flew operations as a navigator with 9 Squadron before starting a second tour with 617 Squadron. He was killed 21 March 1945 having completed 45 operations.<br /><br />The collection also contains two albums. <br /><a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2114">Kenneth Gill. Album One</a><br /><a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2117">Kenneth Gill. Album Two</a><br /><br />Additional information on Kenneth Gill is available via the <a href="https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/108654/">IBCC Losses Database.</a><br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Derek Gill and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
[missing words] husband, Captain [missing words] stream Guards, who first [missing words] wife, formerly Miss Patricia Patton-Bethune, while he was serving in Yorkshire.
Mr. and Mrs. Hayes, of Kiln Hill, Linton, Wetherby, received the M.C. conferred on their son, the late Captain Graham Hayes, Border Regiment. The Rev. W. Hill, of Doncaster, received the M.C conferred on his son, the late Major Anthony Hill, K.O.Y.L.I.
Mrs Gill, with whom was her father-in-law, of Kyffin Avenue, Halton, Leeds, received the D.F.C. conferred on her husband, the late Flying-Officer Kenneth Gill.
Mrs Thompson, of Carlisle, who was accompanied by her mother-in-law, who lives at 40, Dragon Avenue, Harrogate, received the A.F.C. conferred on her husband, the late Flying-Officer Sydney Thompson.
Mrs Nicoll, accompanied by her mother-in-law, Mrs. Looker, of Wood House Lane, East Ardsley, Wakefield, received the D.S.M. with Bar awarded to her husband, the late Petty Officer Laurie Nicoll, R.N Mr. and Mrs. Curtis, of Victoria Road, Grangetown, Middlesbrough, received the M.M. conferred on their son, the late Private James Curtis, Duke of Wellington's Regiment.
Mr. James Dixon, of St. Audrey Avenue, Harrogate, received the M.M. awarded to his son, the late Quartermaster-Sergt. Joseph Dixon, King's Own Hussars.
Mrs. Smith, of Dewsbury, received the M.M. on behalf of her son, the late C.S.M. James Smith, Border Regiment.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
Newspaper cutting - investiture of husband's medal
Description
An account of the resource
Includes Vera Gill receiving Kenneth Gill's DFC as well as other personnel's awards of MC, AFC, DSM, and MM.
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Yorkshire
England--Leeds
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Civilian
Royal Air Force
Royal Navy
British Army
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One newspaper cutting
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
SGillK1438901v30084
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Jayne L Bailey
Distinguished Flying Cross
Distinguished Service Medal
killed in action
Military Cross
Military Medal
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1017/34248/SThomasFDJ120392v10010.1.jpg
17a3fde1f4c5e55b8e088a15d0e4f6b4
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Thompson, Frederick Denzil James
F D J Thompson
Description
An account of the resource
Five items. An oral history interview with Peter Thompson (b. 1933) about his uncle, Flight Lieutenant Frederick Denzil James Thompson DFC. Fred Thompson flew operations with Hamish Mahaddie. Collection also includes a photograph, correspondence and newspaper cuttings. <br /><br />The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Peter Thompson and catalogued by Nigel Huckins. <br /><br />Additional information on Frederick Denzil James Thompson is available via the <a href="https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/227942/">IBCC Losses Database</a>.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2018-07-07
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Thompson, FDJ
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
[inserted] Newpaper cutting of WRNS Jeanette Thompson at the Palace to receive her husbands medal [/inserted]
Pride of the Wives, Mothers
[photograph]
Mrs. Murphy
[photograph]
Lady Ward
[photograph]
Wren Thomson.
[photograph]
Mrs. Parish.
FOUR women who went to the Palace to receive from the King medals won by their men-folk, who gave their lives for their country. Mrs. Murphy was presented with the M.C. awarded to her husband, Lieut.-Colonel R. Murphy, of the Buffs, while Lady Ward received the M.C. awarded to her son, Major Douglas Ward. Wren Thompson, widow of Flight-Lieutenant F. Thompson, received her husband's D.F.C. and Bar, and Mrs. Parish, of Sheffield was presented with the George Cross awarded to her son, Sergeant Graham Parish. Story of the investiture and more pictures on Page 5.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Newspaper cutting - pride of wives, mothers
Description
An account of the resource
Starts with photographs of four women and then mentions that four women went to the palace to receive medals won by their menfolk. Two army widows received Military Crosses, the mother of RAF Sergeant Graham Parish the George Cross and the widow of Frederick Thompson the DFC and bar. Captioned 'Newspaper cutting of WRNS Jeanette Thompson at the palace to receive her husbands medal'.
This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No better quality copies are available.
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
British Army
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One newspaper cutting
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
SThomasFDJ120392v10010
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Sue Smith
Distinguished Flying Cross
George Cross
killed in action
Military Cross
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1490/27582/PMitchellJEF16010053.1.jpg
03ed8e100476176d35245dff2c431942
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Mitchell, Mitch
John Ernest Francis Mitchell
J E F Mitchell
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2016-02-27
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Mitchell, JEF
Description
An account of the resource
59 items. Flight Lieutenant John Ernest Francis 'Mitch' Mitchell. Joined the RAF as a boy entrant in 1934 and trained as a wireless operator. Flew on Vickers Virginia, Handley Page Heyford and Whitley before the war. Completed an operational tour on Whitley 1939-41. After being rested he flew a second tour of operations as a wireless operator with 207 Squadron before retraining as a pilot post war. Collection contains his flying logbooks, memoires of his air force career and first operations, lists of his operations, correspondence and photographs.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by C A Wood and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Albert Ball's grave
Description
An account of the resource
Grave of Captain Albert Ball VC DSO MC in cemetery surrounded by other graves.
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One b/w photograph
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Photograph
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
PMitchellJEF16010053
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
France
France--Annoeullin
Distinguished Service Order
final resting place
Military Cross
Victoria Cross
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/501/22571/MCurnockRM1815605-171114-018.2.pdf
016c5b36e006bb2bf9b025c8d8d14b3a
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
Curnock, Richard
Richard Murdock Curnock
R M Curnock
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Curnock, RM
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2016-04-18
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Description
An account of the resource
92 items. An oral history interview with Warrant Officer Richard Curnock (1924, 1915605 Royal Air Force), his log book, letters, photographs and prisoner of war magazines. He flew operations with 425 Squadron before being shot down and becoming a prisoner of war.
The collection has been licenced to the IBCC Digital Archive by Richard Curnock and catalogued by Barry Hunter.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Ex-RCAF The Camp Jan 1990
Description
An account of the resource
News-sheet of the ex-Air Force POW Association. This edition covers POW's in Perpetuity, the Red Cross, a new memorial at Plymouth Hoe, Geoof Taylor -author, advance notice of a reunion in Vancouver, lost members, ex-POW histories, Obituaries, a message from the President, Gen from around the circuit and photographs from the 1989 Ottawa reunion.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
The RAF ex-POW Association
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1990-01
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
16 printed sheets
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
MCurnockRM1815605-171114-018
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Canadian Air Force
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Plymouth
France--Dieppe
Canada
British Columbia--Vancouver
Ontario--Ottawa
Germany--Koblenz
Germany--Dresden
Germany--Leipzig
Germany--Luckenwalde
Ontario--Toronto
Alberta--Edmonton
Belgium
France--Fresnes (Val-de-Marne)
France--Saint-Nazaire
Alberta--Hinton
Germany--Berlin
England--Cambridge
England--Oxford
England--Southampton
Germany--Cologne
France--Le Havre
Germany--Hamburg
Germany--Lübeck
Manitoba--Brandon
Switzerland--Geneva
United States--Mason-Dixon Line
England--Skipton
France--Falaise
Manitoba--Winnipeg
Germany--Essen
Virginia--Norfolk
Italy--Sicily
Italy--Calabria
Italy--Naples
Italy--Florence
Austria--Spittal an der Drau
Poland--Toruń
Poland--Gdańsk
Germany--Frankfurt am Main
Europe--Elbe River
Germany--Osnabrück
Germany--Bad Fallingbostel
France--Bordeaux (Nouvelle-Aquitaine)
Germany--Mühlberg (Bad Liebenwerda)
Italy
Poland
France
Virginia
Ontario
Alberta
Germany
Austria
Switzerland
United States
Germany--Ruhr (Region)
England--Cambridgeshire
England--Devon
England--Hampshire
England--Yorkshire
England--Oxfordshire
Manitoba
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
10 Squadron
214 Squadron
4 Group
40 Squadron
405 Squadron
408 Squadron
415 Squadron
419 Squadron
420 Squadron
424 Squadron
425 Squadron
426 Squadron
427 Squadron
428 Squadron
429 Squadron
431 Squadron
432 Squadron
433 Squadron
434 Squadron
6 Group
air gunner
aircrew
B-17
bale out
Beaufighter
Bennett, Donald Clifford Tyndall (1910-1986)
bomb aimer
Caterpillar Club
Conspicuous Gallantry Medal
crash
Distinguished Flying Cross
Distinguished Service Order
Dulag Luft
escaping
Goering, Hermann (1893-1946)
Halifax
Hitler, Adolf (1889-1945)
Hurricane
Lancaster
Me 110
memorial
Military Cross
navigator
Operational Training Unit
P-51
Pathfinders
prisoner of war
RAF Alconbury
RAF Biggin Hill
RAF Digby
RAF Hendon
RAF St Eval
Red Cross
Spitfire
Stalag 3A
Stalag Luft 3
Stalag Luft 4
Stirling
strafing
training
Typhoon
Victoria Cross
Wellington
Whitley
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/501/22536/MCurnockRM1815605-171114-011.2.pdf
74fa5e15c5e7788b9a6f73056580fbd3
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Curnock, Richard
Richard Murdock Curnock
R M Curnock
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Curnock, RM
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2016-04-18
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Description
An account of the resource
92 items. An oral history interview with Warrant Officer Richard Curnock (1924, 1915605 Royal Air Force), his log book, letters, photographs and prisoner of war magazines. He flew operations with 425 Squadron before being shot down and becoming a prisoner of war.
The collection has been licenced to the IBCC Digital Archive by Richard Curnock and catalogued by Barry Hunter.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
The Kriegie March 2010
Description
An account of the resource
The news-sheet of the RAF ex-POW Association. This edition covers refurbishing the memorial to "The Fifty" and the construction of a replica hut 104 at Zagan., the 65th anniversary of the Great Escape, the Royal Windsor Tattoo, a POW day at High Wycombe, photographs of the memorial at Zagan, the annual dinner at RAF Henlow, Recco Report ofg ex-POWs activities, Obituaries, Book Reviews, changes to the membership directory, and newspaper cuttings about Air Cadets on parade.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
The RAF ex-POW Association
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2010-03
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
21 printed sheets
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
MCurnockRM1815605-171114-011
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Wehrmacht. Luftwaffe
Royal New Zealand Air Force
United States Army Air Force
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Germany--Berlin
Great Britain
England--High Wycombe
England--London
Germany--Sylt
Germany--Mannheim
Germany--Kiel
Poland--Żagań
Germany--Helgoland
England--Windsor (Windsor and Maidenhead)
Poland
Germany
England--Berkshire
England--Buckinghamshire
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
10 Squadron
144 Squadron
57 Squadron
77 Squadron
aircrew
Blenheim
Distinguished Service Order
Dulag Luft
escaping
evading
flight engineer
Hampden
Hurricane
Ju 88
Lancaster
Me 109
memorial
Military Cross
mine laying
navigator
prisoner of war
RAF Bassingbourn
RAF Coningsby
RAF Cranwell
RAF Dishforth
RAF Halton
RAF Hemswell
RAF Hendon
RAF Henlow
RAF North Coates
RAF North Luffenham
RAF Northolt
Special Operations Executive
Stalag Luft 1
Stalag Luft 3
Stalag Luft 6
Stalag Luft 7
the long march
Whitley
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/501/22507/MCurnockRM1815605-171114-004.1.pdf
7f988e11cd713fb18e3bb9057ddea4e7
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Curnock, Richard
Richard Murdock Curnock
R M Curnock
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Identifier
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Curnock, RM
Date
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2016-04-18
Rights
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This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Description
An account of the resource
92 items. An oral history interview with Warrant Officer Richard Curnock (1924, 1915605 Royal Air Force), his log book, letters, photographs and prisoner of war magazines. He flew operations with 425 Squadron before being shot down and becoming a prisoner of war.
The collection has been licenced to the IBCC Digital Archive by Richard Curnock and catalogued by Barry Hunter.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
The Kriegie June 1995
Description
An account of the resource
News Sheet of the RAF ex-POW Association. Articles describe The Great Escape Memorial Service, held in London, the Memorial to Sir Arthur Harris and the aircrews of Bomber Command, an account of a visit to Sagan, March 1994, obituaries, a visit to RAF Honington in October 1992, a reunion in Vancouver, Recco Report - stories about Kriegies and books written by former POWs,
Creator
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The RAF ex-POW Association
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1995-06
Format
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12 printed sheets
Language
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eng
Type
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Text
Identifier
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MCurnockRM1815605-171114-004
Coverage
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Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Royal Air Force. Coastal Command
Royal Canadian Air Force
Royal Navy
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--London
Poland--Żagań
New Zealand--Auckland
Canada
Ontario--Toronto
Canada
British Columbia--Abbotsford
British Columbia--Victoria
England--Headcorn
Australia
New South Wales--Penrith
Germany--Stuttgart
Germany--Mannheim
Germany--Leipzig
England--Stafford
England--Nottingham
Poland
New South Wales
Ontario
Germany
New Zealand
England--Kent
England--Nottinghamshire
England--Staffordshire
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
106 Squadron
138 Squadron
42 Squadron
460 Squadron
78 Squadron
aircrew
Beaufighter
crash
Distinguished Flying Cross
Distinguished Flying Medal
Dulag Luft
escaping
evading
flight engineer
Fw 190
George Cross
George VI, King of Great Britain (1895-1952)
Harris, Arthur Travers (1892-1984)
Harvard
Lancaster
Manchester
Me 110
memorial
Military Cross
prisoner of war
RAF Alconbury
RAF Biggin Hill
RAF Honington
Scharnhorst
Spitfire
sport
Stalag 3A
Stalag Luft 1
Stalag Luft 3
Stalag Luft 4
the long march
Victoria Cross
wireless operator
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/163/22392/PBanksP15020023.2.jpg
b76a3e3308529c869be0915de009c619
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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Banks, Peter. Album two
Description
An account of the resource
The album contains a varied collection of photographs taken whilst based at RAF Feltwell from 1937 onwards. There are aerial views of Windsor and Buckingham Palace, Harrow aircraft, plus social and service events. Post-war he was transferred to Singapore via India and Burma. The album reflects his social life with occasional photograph of his service activities at RAF Seletar. His return to UK via Bombay at the time of Indian independence is recorded, followed by scenic shots round Wick in Scotland. Finally there are some photographs of Angkor Thom in Cambodia. It also contains pages from newspapers dated 18 and 19 June 1940. <br /><br />Return to the <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/140">main collection</a>.
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collection-policy.
Format
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One photograph album
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Identifier
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PBanksP1501
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
This is how B.E.F. fought the Nazis
Description
An account of the resource
Main article concerns awards of Distinguished Service Order and Military Cross to British army army officers during recent fighting in France. Other headline: Philippines send £2629 to our fund.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1940-06-19
Format
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One newspaper page
Language
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eng
Type
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Text
Identifier
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PBanksP15020023
Coverage
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British Army
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
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This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Distinguished Service Order
Military Cross
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1150/11707/PSwaffieldJ1703.1.jpg
601c2eed3763b0488e3dbe38e827c35b
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1150/11707/ASwaffieldJ171004.2.mp3
f301149005322902267bbef4c79a6795
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Swaffield, James
J Swaffield
Description
An account of the resource
Four items. An oral history interview with Squadron Leader James Swaffield (b. 1925) his log book and photographs. He flew operations as a navigator with 44 and 106 Squadrons.
The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by James Swaffield and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-10-04
Rights
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This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
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Swaffield, J
Transcribed audio recording
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Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
CB: My name is Chris Brockbank and today is Tuesday, Wednesday, the 4th of October 2017 and we are in Maidenhead, talking to James Jim Swaffield, a navigator, about his experiences in the war and afterwards. But what are your earliest recollections of life, Jim? When you were young, what do you remember first?
JS: I don’t know
US: Do you remember where you lived?
JS: Yeah, I’m just trying to think
US: Where was it you lived, when were very young?
JS: What, in Chiswick?
US: Yeah, do you remember the road you lived in before you went to Bedford Park?
JS: Yes
US: Where was that?
JS: Just trying
US: It’s next to your school later, school you went to. I remember, it was Rivercourt Road
CB: Oh, was it, in Chiswick?
US: You know Chiswick?
CB: Yes, my grandparents live there
US: That’s where you lived, you were born, I think in a nursing home in Kensal Rise or somewhere like that but that’s where you lived in Rivercourt Road before you went, Jim lived in Bedford Park. Do you know Bedford Park?
CB: I don’t know. Then he went to Bedford Park, right.
US: They went, when he was quite young, to Bedford Park
JS: My father had an MC
CB: Did he?
JS: Yeah. In the First World War, which I suppose would’ve made certain things different from an ordinary person, you know, he was a Military Cross
US: He never told us why he got it, did he?
JS: Mh?
US: He never told us why he got it, we only found out by chance a couple of years ago
JS: No, he wasn’t
US: No. What did your dad do?
JS: What did he do?
US: What was his work?
JS: Well, he went to, oh, what’s it now?
US: Smithfield
JS: Mh?
US: Smithfield
JS: Yes?
US: He was a manager at Smithfield Meat Market, wasn’t he?
JS: Yeah, I
US: He used to get up and go to work at about half past two in the morning, didn’t he?
JS: Something like that, yeah. He definitely had an MC,
US: Yeah.
JS: I suppose years and years back, no he wouldn’t [unclear], I think he got married at the end of the First World War, no, and he went
US: He was later getting married, where did he go at the end of the First World War, when he was still in the army, do you remember?
JS: I think so, yes
US: Where was it, he was
JS: Yeah
US: [unclear] there lot,
JS: Yeah
US: Do you remember where?
JS: Oh
US: Was it Mesopotamia, wasn’t it?
JS: Mh?
US: [clears throat] It was in Mesopotamia he went on after the war? He was still in the army and he went out to the Middle East, didn’t he? He was very rude about it, do you remember?
JS: I think, yeah, I think, these things are there I think
US2: Iraq, which one?
CB: Say more about him.
JS: Oh goodness, very early getting up in the morning, I know, to go to
US: Smithfield
JS: Yeah. What was it now?
CB: [unclear]
JS: No, not really, no, go to Piccadilly, I went to a few of those, you know, saw him at Christmas for a time perhaps, something like that but, you knew him, didn’t you?
US: Yes, I knew him, quite a while
JS: And, I’d have to look and see and find anything
CB: Sure, sure, we’ll stop just a minute.
JS: Yeah, went to school at Latymer, yeah
US: Latymer Upper
JS: Yeah, Upper Latymer
US: Or Upper Latymer. Where was that school, do you remember?
JS: Mh?
US: Where was the school?
JS: In Hammersmith
US: That’s right
JS: Used to walk from Chiswick to Hammersmith. You remember all that [unclear]?
US: Well, yeah
JS: Yeah, yeah
CB: It was a good school, was it?
JS: At Latymer?
CB: Yeah
JS: Latymer Upper School, good school
CB: What about your friends? Goods friends at school, were there?
JS: Not necessarily
US: Oh! What about Ron and Alan and [unclear] the man Ron, Alan?
JS: Well, you had things like, I think, military things [unclear] you know, all [unclear] were introduced to that, yeah
CB: Because it was an upper school,
JS: Mh?
CB: Because it was an upper school it will have had the equivalent of the Combined Cadet Force, so there was training, wasn’t there?
JS: Oh, I think that
CB: Military training at school
JS: Yes, in Hammersmith, yes, I think so
CB: And what age did you leave school?
JS: Oh, quite early, I think, about sixteen, I don’t, I’m not really certain, sixteen or seventeen, I’m not absolutely certain,
US: Fifteen
JS: I found out why
CB: Yes
JS: Will be in the book there
CB: Ok
JS: It might have been in, written in
CB: But what did you do when you left school?
JS: What did I leave school? I can’t remember that
US: [unclear] his memory because
JS: Yes
CB: Yes
US: [unclear] find interesting then, you used to work up in, I think it was up in the Haymarket or something like that and you said you used to cycle up every day after the Blitz through all the damage, they were still clearing up, from the air raids
JS: I don’t know, could be
US: Do you remember?
JS: Could be, yeah
US: I know you told me that
JS: Yes
US: Think he worked in an office of some kind
JS: Yeah
US: It’s fascinating cause he said he used to ride to work
JS: Yes
US: Immediately after the bombing you
CB: Right
US: And there’d be, you know, all the rubbish over the roads and [unclear] still clearing up
CB: When the war started, you were aged fourteen
JS: Yes, about that
CB: And school leaving age in those days was fourteen but at some schools, grammar schools and so on, people stayed on longer, age fifteen or sixteen
JB: I have to look
CB: And you couldn’t go into the forces at that age, so people took a job and from what Diana just said, it sounds as though you had this job in Haymarket
JS: Could be, yes, could be that, could be that
CB: Now, did you join the Air Training Corps in those days? What made you interested in aeroplanes?
JS: Yes. Well I think, I really think of as army, I think I would put that in and I don’t think that, well, he was perhaps a bit too old at that time to actually join the Air Force but I, can’t think of him being all that interested in, I mean, he was in the army I think for the whole time of the war going but that was before my time
CB: Yeah
JS: Nearly
CB: The First War, yeah, so we are now going fast forward to the beginning of World War Two, September ’39,
JS: Yeah
CB: You are at that time, you were born in 1924, you are fourteen
JS: Yes
CB: You can’t leave school till you’re
JS: Yes
CB: Well, you can leave it about that age, but did you stay on a bit?
JS: Yeah
CB: But, clearly you had a job for a while
JS: Yeah. But he got the MC
CB: Yes
JS: The Military Cross
CB: Yes, so he didn’t go back in again for the second war, into the army, did he? But you did go into the Air Force
JS: I don’t know how, do you know?
US: I think he was probably a bit old and he probably wasn’t that good, he had a bad chest [unclear] taken him anyway, I can’t think how old he would have been, died when he was seventeen, at about sixty three
JS: Yeah
US: [unclear] how old he would have been
CB: Well, he would have been close on fifty, so they wouldn’t have taken him in but in your case, you had this job, what made you join the RAF?
JS: The RAF, yeah
CB: Who did you know in your family who had already joined the forces?
JS: Well, my father of course
CB: Yeah
JS: And his brother. Do you remember him?
US: No, we are talking about you going into the Air Force, what made you decide
JS: To
US: To go in the Air Force? Who did you know who was already in the Air Force?
JS: Well, I was in the Air Force
US: Yeah, but you had a cousin, didn’t you, who was in, who gave you some advice, who was it? Do you
JS: I could, I think I could, given a bit of time
CB: Look it up, Yes, but doesn’t matter, it’s just a recall.
JS: Yeah
CB: So, Diana, who was the cousin?
US: Don, do you remember Don, your cousin Don?
JS: Yes
US: He was a Pathfinder
JS: Yes
US: Do you remember him? Cause he would’ve had some influence I think, cause he was in two or three years before you
JS: Yeah
US: And he did ninety tours and DFC and Bar, didn’t he? Do you remember Don?
JS: Yes
US: Did he talk to you?
JS: I’d have to think about it.
CB: Ok
JS: So let’s go back a bit
CB: So, was he a pilot or a navigator?
US: He was a navigator
CB: Right, on Mosquitoes
US: No, in Lancasters
CB: In Lancasters
US: He was in Lancasters, too. That’s why Harry was in the Pathfinders, in Lancasters
CB: Yeah, ok, right. So, why did you join the RAF at a junior age? You joined when you were seventeen, didn’t you?
JS: Yes
CB: How did you get away with that?
JS: With?
CB: How did you get away with joining the RAF at seventeen underage?
JS: I can’t at the, I can’t
CB: According, interestingly
JS: Could be in the book
CB: According to your logbook
JS: Yes
CB: You were a navigator
JS: Yes
CB: According to your logbook, you started your navigator training on the 14th of September 1942
JS: Yes
CB: That’s when you were age seventeen
JS: Yes
CB: And three months, that was one year too young [laughs],
JS: Yes
CB: So you must have joined the RAF a bit before then because you would’ve had to do your initial training
JS: Yes
CB: Before you did navigator training, using your logbook as the date in there
JS: Right, yeah
CB: So, where did you do your navigator training?
JS: Where did I do that?
CB: Yes
JS: That’s a good point, so that’s a good point, yeah. Oh, I got a vague remembrance of it, but I can’t tell you that much about it
CB: Ok, your logbook says, number 7 AOS but it doesn’t say where that is,
JS: Yes
CB: But we will look that up and
US: [unclear] go abroad sometimes to do it
CB: Yes, so it could be Canada
US: No, it’s in Northern Ireland,
CB: Oh, was it? [laughs]
US: He wasn’t lucky enough to go anywhere nice [laughs]
JS: Where did I go?
US: You were in Northern Ireland
CB: So that was actually at Bishops Court
JS: Yeah
CB: Excuse Northern Ireland,
JS: Yeah
CB: I just looked at the front of the book
JS: We went to America, didn’t we?
US: No, I haven’t been to America, you went briefly on business. Now that’s something quite different
CB: Right
JS: Oh, right
US: We’re talking about, do you remember going to Northern Ireland? Cause I think Don went to Canada, but you got lumbered with Northern Ireland
JS: Ah yes, yes, I have some remembrance of that, ah, yeah, sorry, can’t,
CB: You were there for fifteen months, doing your navigation training, according to your logbook
JS: Yeah, I think that’s probably so, yeah, I think, yes, goodness. Where do we got to after that?
US: Got nothing to do with me,
JS: Mh?
US: Nothing to do with me, I wasn’t there
CB: Then, according to your logbook, you then went to Operational Training Unit number 14 which was Husband’s Bosworth
US: Yes
CB: And Market Harborough
JS: Yes
CB: So there, you would be flying on the Wellington
JS: Yes, I can tell you some of these things, given time and, you know
CB: When you’re sitting in your bath tonight, you’ll remember all of it
JS: Yes, that’s, yeah [laughs]
CB: So, you’re at the Operational Training Unit for seven months
JS: Yes
CB: So we’re now July ’44
JS: Yes
CB: And it now says that you went to 106 and 44 Squadrons, that was unusual for people to hop straight from the OTU to a squadron
JS: Yes
CB: Because it needed to go through the Heavy Conversion Unit
JS: Oh yes
CB: But that might be what 106 was
JS: Yes
CB: And so you were there
JS: Yeah, we went together
US: Not this time, no, this is before, I was a child when you were doing your [unclear]
JS: When we were out in, oh, where was it first of all?
US: Khartoum
JS: Yeah. Where were we now?
US: [unclear] us, the first one was Khartoum
JS: Yeah
US: And you were in the Canal Zone
CB: And that’s when you re-joined, wasn’t it?
JS: Yeah
US: Yeah
CB: So if we go fast backwards,
JS: Yeah
CB: Your Operational Training Unit, then you joined 44 Squadron for your ops
JS: Yes
CB: And you joined 44 Squadron, where was that? Do you remember?
JS: 44
CB: At Dunholme Lodge?
US: Just looking at [unclear], we found it once
JS: Yes, we, let me think now
CB: Well, after the, I’ll tell you what it is, that in your logbook it gives the answer here, that you did got to 1661 Heavy Conversion Unit
JS: Yeah
CB: Before going to the squadron and so you did that in May 1944 and from there and you flew the Stirling there,
JS: Yeah
CB: The Heavy Conversion Unit and you left there a month later at the end of June and then you went to, according to this, number 4 LFS, which is the Lancaster Finishing School, so what people did was to go to an HCU on Stirlings and then convert to Lancasters on the Lancaster Finishing School, which then took you, which was Swinderby, took you to 106 Squadron
JS: Oh yeah
CB: Flying Lancasters
JS: Oh yeah
CB: Which was July ’44, just after D-Day
JS: Yea
CB: So you were on ops
JS: Yeah
CB: Just after D-Day, weren’t you?
JS: Yeah
CB: And
JS: Yeah
CB: Actually, your first op here was to Kiel
JS: Yes
CB: On, with 106 Squadron
JS: I can’t remember Lancaster moving from the chair
CB: Yes
JS: I’ll have to have a look and see the gip, the pilot was getting on, you know, in the front and I can remember that very well. There’s something else that, he felt it was awful laying in the front of the, we are talking about Lancaster, I think?
CB: Yes
JS: In the front, he, just weird things do come back sometimes, well, I can’t [unclear] what went with that, oh goodness me!
CB: Why did you get up and why did he go to the front?
JS: I think she remembers a lot of these things
US: Well, you told me he used to say to you when you were over the target
JS: Yeah
US: Would you like to come up and see? And you went up to see, you know, fires and everything
JS: Yeah
US: And but Jim said, I didn’t want to go up and see, I just wanted to get the hell out of there [laughs], those were his words, so he, you know, he wasn’t interested in that, he just wanted to go home
JS: Yeah
US: Do you remember the story you told me about the tail of the Lancaster just under you, do you remember that story? By the Lancaster that was above you in formation and there was one just below? [doorbell rings] Do you remember what happened?
JS: Sounds like
US: Oh, don’t get me really, do you remember what happened? What you told me happened?
JS: No, can’t remember
US: Like the bomb from the other Lancaster?
CB: What did it do?
US: It came down and took the tail right off of one flying below, that [unclear] going up [unclear]
CB: What other things do you remember?
JS: I was thinking, getting closer to,
CB: When you were waiting to go on an operation, before you took off, what were you doing?
JS: Doing?
CB: Before you got on to an operation
JS: Yeah
CB: What did you do?
JS: Yeah. Well, if I was the navigator, it would be taking your, [laughs] your newspaper with you or something of that sort, you know, but you’d find something that would be quite good, you know, and what else was there? [unclear] the thing, you know, in some book or something for hand over to the bosses but
US: Oh dear, sorry, I
JS: But we have to go back, I could say to you now that, given some a bit of time, I could give you a lot of
CB: Ok.
JS: Times
CB: Alright, we can do that later.
JS: Right
CB: So, we can just pick up some bits now
JS: Yeah
CB: And then go over some detail later
JS: Yes
US: I’m fascinated that you know the experiment of the crew on that plane cause I always wondered whether they survived that
CB: Well, the gunner of course didn’t
US: Below it went
CB: Cause it took the whole of the turret out
US: Out
CB: Yeah
US: Now, I often wondered, did they crash-land or just parachute?
CB: I’ll tell you later. Well, the plane flew on
US: It did? Gosh! I’m surprised
CB: What other things do you remember about preparing for a flight?
JS: Preparing for a flight
CB: For an operation
JS: For an operation
CB: What do you remember about that? I mean, you went to a briefing, didn’t you? All the crews went together in the briefing. So, the map was on the wall
JS: Yes
CB: And this is the briefing for tonight
JS: Yeah
CB: What do you remember about that? So, there is this huge map of the continent with Britain
JS: Yeah
CB: And it shows the route of the raid with the diversions
JS: Yes
CB: But you had to prepare as the navigator
JS: Yes
CB: With the pilot
JS: Yeah
CB: You had to prepare for the operation. What of you remember about that?
JS: I can’t think of that, really
CB: Because you were given a bombing time, you were given a bombing time and you had to work out your route to get there
JS: Yes, could be, yeah
CB: We’ll stop there for a mo. At the OTU?
JS: Yeah, Piccadilly,
CB: But this would’ve been, this was number 29 OTU and you were clearly a navigator instructor
JS: Yes
CB: There
JS: Yeah
CB: What were you doing, do you remember?
JS: [laughs] You got the final
CB: You were newly commissioned at that stage as a pilot officer
JS: Yes
CB: And you’d done four hundred and fifty hours of flying in total? Of which two hundred and thirty-seven were at night. I’m stopping again. You, does any particular raid?
JS: [unclear] of the, [unclear]
CB: So, when you got on ops
JS: In Piccadilly?
CB: No, when you were on operations in your Lancaster
JS: Yes
CB: What was the most memorable operational flight that you did, would you say?
JS: No, I can’t really
CB: If I show you this, you can see there your early operations there
JS: See what they say, yeah
CB: What does that remind you?
JS: Yeah. Let me see, navigation, navigator, navigator
CB: Cause you’re always the navigator
JS: Navigator, yeah
CB: But the target
JS: Right, the target
CB: Is in red. The whole, the night operations there are all in red
JS: Ah! Operations
CB: So, your first op was on Kiel
JS: Operations, operation again, two three
CB: So what does that remind you?
JS: Underlined by Kiev
CB: Kiel
JS: Kiel, St [unclear]
CB: In France
JS: And Givaux
CB: Also in France
JS: Up to then
CB: So, you did your thirty ops and then you were rested at an Operational Conversion Unit. What do you remember about working there?
JS: Going to
CB: To the Operational Conversion Unit after you left the squadron, 44 Squadron, what do you remember about that?
JS: Can’t remember at the moment
CB: Ok. Now the war finished in Europe on the 8th of May 1945
JS: Yes
CB: What do you remember about the celebrations and the feeling at the end of the war?
JS: I can’t remember it
CB: For some people, they got caught up in the celebrations, others were just on the station
JS: Yes
CB: And work continued as usual
JS: Yes
CB: So
JS: This is, this is, what time?
CB: So, we are talking about May 1945,
JS: Yeah
CB: Was the end of the war in Europe
JS: Yeah
CB: When you were in the Lancaster, 106 squadron and 44, it was the same crew, was it? What do you remember about your crew?
JS: I can’t remember it.
CB: Did you keep in touch?
JS: Mh?
CB: Did you keep in touch with any of your crew after you ended operations and after the war?
JS: Something comes into [unclear], Kensington, Hammersmith, these are places thinking, you know, areas
CB: In your mind, yes
JS: Yeah. Areas of where I might have been
CB: Your family was living there, wasn’t it? Do you remember what the effect on your family was of the V weapons, V-1 and V-2?
JS: The
CB: V-1s and V-2s? What effect did that have on your family? Because they were in the Chiswick, Hammersmith, Kensington area, weren’t they?
JS: Yeah. No, it’s, I can’t remember it,
CB: So, according to the detail that we’ve got, you left the RAF
JS: Yes
CB: In 1947
JS: Ah!
CB: And then you went to work for who?
JS: That could be so of course
CB: You went to work for Joe Lyons
JS: Go to
CB: Joe Lyons
JS: Joe, oh yeah, yeah
CB: What did you do at Lyons?
JS: Lyons, I was with them earlier on, Lyons, yeah, that could be, I had a job with Lyons
CB: Did you do catering before you left the RAF, is that how you came to them?
JS: Before
CB: Did you volunteer to be a catering officer?
JS: Yeah
CB: Before you left the RAF?
JS: It could be, it could be
CB: So, then you went to Joe Lyons in ’47 and you worked with them till ’51
JS: Yeah
CB: When you re-joined the RAF. What was the initiative to do that?
JS: I, yeah, I couldn’t remember this somehow, Piccadilly, Hyde Park, the area, you know, I could be in
CB: Well, there was a J. Lyons in the Strand, wasn’t there?
JS: Yeah, Strand, yes, that’s, yeah.
CB: And something prompted you to re-join the RAF
JS: It could be so, [laughs] I can’t, can’t remember
CB: Ok.
JS: No.
CB: We will pause there
JS: Yeah.
CB: Cause you, you ran the RAF Club from ’76 to ‘91
JS: There could be, that could be something, yeah, could be something
CB: I remember you there
JS: Good to have you here, you know [laughs]? where, was I married by then?
CB: You were, you were, yes
JS: Yeah
CB: What were you doing when you were working at the RAF club?
JS: Ah, that’s a good point, yeah, there’s a lot of [unclear], lot of [unclear] for [unclear], again, I’m not sure on
CB: What was the condition of the RAF club when you became the general manager?
JS: Yeah
CB: What was it like to walk into?
JS: I’ll try and find your book
CB: Was it dingy? It was dingy, rundown
JS: Yeah
CB: And what did you do to change that?
JS: Yeah. I can’t think
CB: You completely transformed the RAF club
JS: I, likely, yes, likely, yeah. Yes, I remember now, I think of the wife, I think I became settled at that time. My goodness, yes. No, I can’t think of much more, it was a base that I could see some very highly, highly rated people, you know, or some youngster, you know, but it was quite a good job, quite a good job, that I enjoyed. I’ll find you some of this, you know
CB: Do
JS: Give me some time after
CB: Yes. Ok.
JS: It’s. I think, I moved out to here, you know, on this organisation, cause I can’t remember much else between that. I, yes, if I look back army and navy don’t to mind to, to look at all, look at the form, I think I was, for now I take a lot of, looking upstairs and saying who is there? I couldn’t, can really pull you off, you know, ideas and what have you. I love to watch the aeroplane going across there
CB: From your house
JS: [unclear] but I, on the other hand, there is not much I can go into, you know, do something but, I was, I was carefully [unclear] with that
CB: Of course, when you were working for Trusthouse Forte, after you left the RAF on the second occasion,
JS. Yeah
CB: You were the director of airport division, weren’t you?
JS: Yes, [unclear]
CB: And then you moved to the RAF Club
JS: Maybe the one, yeah
CB: So you’ve always maintained your fascination with aeroplanes
JS: Yes, oh yeah, yes, yeah
CB: What’s the thing in your mind that stands out most about your career? What do you remember?
JS: We could do that in this area, you know, on occasions, not so much now as was but we, even now, we are doing something in this area, yeah
CB: Well, Jim, thank you very much for talking
JS: Well, I tried
CB: We’ll catch up with more later I think. Thank you
JS: It’s, you could come back and say that I didn’t say [laughs], or it didn’t sound very, you know, and to some extent, it doesn’t. I sit in this area
CB: Yes
JS: Area, small
CB: Your little extension here
JS: Have a look through there often
CB: Through the French windows, yes
JS: Yeah
CB: Well, it’s a lovely garden, isn’t it?
JS: Yes, we, no, I mean, we like this place, but it’s, we run it pretty carefully,
CB: I think it’s very nice
JS: Yeah. We are looking at the moment, course of coming back, in the jobs [unclear] or something, odd things, you know, before but we’re quite happy in this place
CB: I can imagine, it’s very nice
JS: Yeah
CB: And at ninety-two, you deserve a quiet time
JS: Yes [laughs], yes. But the wife knows a lot of things
CB: Yes, well, you’ve told her over the years
JS: Yeah
CB: So, we’ll pick up on those later
JS: Yeah, that’s right
CB: Yes
JS: Yeah
CB: Good
JS: Her views could be different to my views in some areas but yes, she thinks things of certain things I think but there’s a changing over at this moment in time. We have very definitely, I think, we would be more adjusted to this place of we have behind us, you know, with the, the water clubs, here, with clubs in, have you seen the back of the area here?
CB: The back there, yes, yes
JS: Yeah, I said, that’s the area we got here
GB: Now we are looking here at a picture here
JS: Yes
CB: Of you with Diana
JS: Yes
CB: I can’t see your rank at the time but what’s that bring back to you?
JS: That’s right, I’m a navigator
CB: Yes
JS: Yeah, there
CB: In your number 1 uniform, in your number 1
JS: That’s right, yes, that’s her. Does she say that is?
CB: Yes
JS: She does, that’s right. Yeah, that’s it.
CB: Right,
JS: Yeah
CB: Thank you Jim.
JS: Navigator
US2: Busy
JS: Yeah
US2: Yeah
JS: Well, oh yes, sometime, you know, using that or calling somebody else into help
US2: Yeah
JS: And the other but, no, I think I enjoyed that, or, didn’t disenjoy it, Lancaster I think it is, the Lancaster I think but, yeah. I’ve been up occasionally since and it has been, you know, good to get up and go in and see what was you did and what happened to you like and there we are
CB: How did you feel about the bombing? How did you feel about doing the bombing raids?
JS: Sorry?
CB: What did you think about doing the bombing raids?
JS: The bombing ring?
CB: When you were on operations, what did you think about it?
JS: I don’t feel, I don’t feel cheerless about it or you know what have you, but I think I did a couple of main courses and no, I think, I quite used it, quite, quite enjoyed it a long time ago
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Interview with James Swaffield
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Chris Brockbank
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-10-04
Rights
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This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Type
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Sound
Identifier
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ASwaffieldJ171004, PSwaffieldJ1703
Conforms To
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Pending review
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Format
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00:52:00 audio recording
Language
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eng
Coverage
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Royal Air Force
Description
An account of the resource
James Swaffield was born and grew up in West London and flew as a navigator in the RAF. He discusses with the interviewer his life before, during and after the war. Highlights include: remembering his father, who served during the First World War and was awarded a Military Cross; his cousin Don flew ninety ops as a navigator and was awarded a DFC and bar; he joined the RAF at seventeen; started his training on the 14th of September 1942 at 7 AOS at RAF Bishops Court, in Northern Ireland, where he spent fifteen months; in July 1944 was posted to 106 Squadron, where his first operation was to Kiel; was posted to 44 Squadron; discusses the briefing before operations; left the RAF in 1947 and went to work in the catering industry, before running the RAF Club from 1976 to 1991.
Contributor
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Peter Schulze
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
Northern Ireland--Down (County)
Great Britain
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1942
1943
1944
1945
106 Squadron
14 OTU
1661 HCU
44 Squadron
Air Observers School
aircrew
bombing
Distinguished Flying Cross
Heavy Conversion Unit
Lancaster
Lancaster Finishing School
Military Cross
navigator
Operational Training Unit
RAF Bishops Court
RAF Husbands Bosworth
RAF Market Harborough
RAF Swinderby
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/990/10667/PStevensMH1504.1.jpg
a13bbc2a376b9b2fc6a391dce8133c2d
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Stevens, Peter
Peter Stevens
P Stevens
Georg Franz Hein
Description
An account of the resource
Eleven items. The collection concerns Squadron Leader Peter Stevens, Military Cross, (1919 - 1979, Royal Air Force) and contains his log book, letters and photographs. Originally called Georg Franz Hein, a German Jew, he was sent to Great Britain by his mother in 1934. He attended school in England and when war was declared he assumed the name of Peter Stevens, a deceased school friend. He joined the Air Force and flew operations as a pilot with 144 Squadron before crash landing his Hampden at Amsterdam in September 1941 and becoming a prisoner of war. <br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Marc Stevens and catalogued by Nigel Huckins. This collection was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No better quality copies are available.<br />
<p>This collection also contains items concerning Ivor Fraser. Additional information on Ivor Fraser is available via the <a href="https://internationalbcc.co.uk/losses/108075/">IBCC Losses Database</a>.</p>
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2015-07-09
Rights
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This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collection-policy.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Stevens, MH
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Peter Stevens
Description
An account of the resource
Head and shoulders portrait of a Peter Stevens wearing battledress with squadron leader rank and medal ribbon including military cross.
Format
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One b/w photograph
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Photograph
Identifier
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PStevensMH1504
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
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This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
aircrew
Military Cross
pilot
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/663/8373/ACarringtonJ170207.2.mp3
501fa00cefda0a59bebe9de4fd707def
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Carrington, Jane
Jane Waterhouse
J Carrington
Description
An account of the resource
Five items. An oral history interview with Jane Carrington nee Waterhouse (b. 1924 2043217 Women's Auxiliary Air Force) and four photographs. She served as a cook and as a drummer in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force.
The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Jane Carrington and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-02-07
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Carrington, J
Transcribed audio recording
A resource consisting primarily of recorded human voice.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
CB: My name is Chris Brockbank, and today is the seventh of February two thousand and seventeen, and I'm in Henfield, Hayfield in Derbyshire, and talking to Jane Carrington about her experiences in the RAF during the war. So Jane, what are the first recollections you have of family life?
JC: We just lived, it wasn't a very particularly happy home for a start, but I don't want that broadcast all over the place.
CB: No. What did your father do?
JC: Well, he was a cotton spinner, which was a very special job in the cotton mills, because you had to work your way up to it, and there's only one spinner, you know, to a cotton mill.
CB: Oh.
JC: And of course the mill closed, that was Clough Mill.
NH: How old were you?
JC: How old, when he was working? I don't know.
NH: School?
CB: So, how many children were there in the family? You, and-?
JC: Three brothers and myself.
CB: Okay, and where were you in the, er, range?
JC: I'm the oldest.
CB: You are. Right. And are your brothers still around?
JC: Three of them are, yes.
CB: All three?
JC: One isn't.
CB: No. Right. So, you went to the local school?
JC: I did.
CB: And how long for?
JC: Until I was fourteen.
CB: Then what did you do?
JC: I was told to go out and find a job. And I landed up at the print works at Strines, and then they told me they didn't want me because (laughs) I didn't like doing the work and had no interest in it. And that was the end of that. I just went from pillar to post. I worked as a cleaning, I've done cleaning, where else did I work Nina?
CB: So, lots of different jobs?
JC: Lots of different, but nothing. Nothing.
NH: Did you work with Gladys then?
JC: (Unclear), with Gladys.
CB: So when the war started you were fifteen.
JC: Nineteen twenty four, I was born.
CB: Thirty nine the war started.
JC: I think I was sixteen.
CB: So you were sixteen. Okay.
JC: Sixteen.
CB: And what happened then?
JC: Do you mean where was I working then?
CB: Mm-hmm.
JC: Well, there was a lady, very old lady, Mrs Pearce, do you remember, Parkhall Crescent, I lived in there, I was supposed to be her companion, looking after her house and cooking for her.
CB: Oh right.
JC: And then of course the war was (slight pause) and I went of to join the WAAF. And she came to meet me, she picked me up at Cardington Camp, took to to Wythall to be demobbed, that lady. I couldn't stand her any more (laughs), I'd had a packet of it.
CB: What made you decide to join up?
JC: (Pause) Just unrest, I suppose, looking to, unsettled. In retrospect. You don't know, do you? When you're young you just, you haven't got the education, you haven't got this, you just-
CB: Okay. And when-
JC: When I came out of the WAAF, I'd worked in the catering office for a while, I got a job in accounts department at Ferodo, where I should have been all the time.
CB: Originally.
JC: And then I got transferred to the North London office at Kings Cross.
CB: Right. So when you were sixteen, seventeen, what made you join the RAF rather than join the Army or the Navy?
JC: Because it sounded more exciting.
CB: Mm-hmm. What else.
JC: I can't think of anything else.
NH: The colour.
JC: The colour, oh, the blue, yes, because as I already told you, everybody always said blue suited me.
CB: Mm-hmm. You like the outfit, did you?
JC: I hadn't mixed in very wonderful company as you know, it was just for me to like. Nothing wrong with people. They were nice people for the most part.
CB: So where did you join up?
JC: I went to enlist at Dover Street in Manchester, 'til they called me to (unclear) roster. Is me voice going?
CB: It's good, keep going.
JC: And there, oh, I went on the train from London Road, as I told you. Never having left the village. And the first to happen was they gave us a sack and a pile of straw, and that was our bed for a week, until they could find beds for us, we slept on the floor.
CB: So where was this?
JC: At Innsworth Lane.
CB: At Innsworth, right. Okay.
JC: Nineteen forty two.
CB: Mm-hmm. And as I say, you were eighteen then.
JC: I was. And then I went to the selection. We've only got vacancies for cooks and ACHGDs
CB: ACH?
JC: General Duties.
CB: Right.
JC: Well, what does that entail? Well anything, cleaning the toilets, sweeping the things, doing this that and the other. And I thought, well, I like making fairy cakes, I'll be a cook. There was a rude awakening for Jane! It was damned hard work.
CB: Was it?
JC: Mm. Six of us cooking for three or four thousand men.
CB: And what about the menu?
JC: I've got that for you. (rustle of paper).
CB: Ok, we'll look at that in a minute. But in general terms, what was the menu?
JC: Well, it's in the book, and I don't remember a lot until I read the book.
CB: Well, what I'm saying is, it's not fairy cakes, so what what were you feeding them?
JC: Oh no, well porridge and bacon, brown stew was a favourite, you might know about brown stew. When I read the books they come back to me.
CB: Yeah, ok. But in general terms, it was good nourishing-
JC: There was nothing wrong with it, nothing whatsoever.
CB: And how did the cooking system work? Because there were a lot of people to feed.
JC: Well, we worked on shifts. That's what you want to know, on shifts.
CB: Right.
JC: I could be walking at the front at Skegness with sand blasting in my face at three o' clock in the morning, for doing breakfast shift. And that shift, erm, clean the kitchen. That was awful, doing those floors, with caustic soda. That's – what are you laughing at? With deck brushes, little hard brushes. Then you squeegee'd it, and then you flip-flopped it. That was a load of flags or something to dry it off. The other shift, and I can't remember the time, I think (pause) we did the evening meal and the prep, see, I'm getting mixed up again.
CB: Keep going.
JC: We cooked the, you know, the dinner. That's it, we cleaned the floor, and then we cooked the lunch. No we didn't, we cooked the lunch first and cleaned the floor afterwards. That was the end of that shift.
CB: Right.
JC: Then the next shift would come on and we'd do preparation for the next day, and whatever. I can't remember much more about that. And that would go on until, oh, six, seven o' clock. Then we had to put the passion cocoa out, don't let that go on your thing, will you. That was big bucket fulls of cocoa, and the airmen who didn't want to go out, came in the billy with their mugs and would take the cocoa. At Skegness we had to go and sit on the beach with cocoa for the lifeboatmen, because they were going out to pick the airmen out of the water. That happened very often. There were great big Thermos flasks. Now I might get this all out of context. Chris, but these are the things that happened.
CB: That's alright. That's fine. I'm quite happy with any of the, any of the remarks. In the background we can just follow the sequence.
JC: Yes. Then I was taken out of there and put in the food factory. Where they made the bread.
CB: Where was that?
JC: Skeg.
CB: Still in Skegness? Yes.
JC: I was on so may stations. What did we do in the food factory? We made the bread, we made the stock pots, we rendered down the bones, and fat. All sorts of things.
CB: Did you keep the fat, in order to use it as dripping?
JC: Oh yes, the fat was sent to the soap factories.
CB: Okay.
JC: Outside each kitchen, from the taps and the sinks, were big sumps, grease traps. You had to go out and scoop it off. Horrible. One Christmas day I can remember the bells were ringing out over the base, and the wireless was on all day long. On Christmas day. And there were six of us, cleaning the grease traps. And we were singing. And we called ourselves Corporal Lombardini's Grease Trap Songsters. I can remember that (laughs). That's just one occasion.
CB: So, what was the main producer of grease, in the cooking?
JC: Oh from bones and fat of animals. I did butchering. I did cooking, butchery, field kitchen, (pause) I worked in the catering office, I worked on the ration wagons, I did practically everything. My last job was in the catering office.
CB: And in the catering office, what was your job there?
JC: Oh, that was interesting. Working out that each man got the right calories, you know, and all the rations. Which are all in this book (taps the book cover).
CB: I know, but the idea of this is so that people can hear what you've got to say, and then they can pick out bits from anything else.
JC: We didn't have to do vegetables, the ACHD's did that.
CB: What vegetable options were there?
JC: Oh, everything, that was available in those days.
CB: Was it normally grown locally, or did they-?
JC: Yes, well, in Lincolnshire, of course, the farmers used to bring stuff in. That weren't supplied by the, you know, the industry.
CB: Including turnips?
JC: Oh aye, plenty of turnips. Sacks of new potatoes, all sorts of things, I can't remember.
CB: Going back to Innsworth, when you went there and you had to lie on the beds, and er, what was the main activity there, were you being taught about the RAF, or, what were you doing?
JC: Oh yes, lectures every day.
CB: And what were they about?
JC: Oh, everything. They even told you how to have a bath. Even though I'd been washing in a tin bath in front of the fire for years. You had to learn how to do a bath. Um, all the general things.
CB: Yeah, but people don't know what those are, you see.
JC: Oh well, hygiene, and drill and discipline, venereal diseases, keep away from that sort of thing, um.
CB: Did they show you films on some things?
JC: No. It was only just lectures.
CB: And how long did that go on for?
JC: Just about six weeks. And the drill, of course.
CB: And after that, at the end of the six weeks, what did you do then?
JC: I was posted to the cookery school at Melksham, and I was there for I don't know how long. Some weeks?
CB: I'll stop it for a few- (noises off) (pause) Now, what I'm back on to , if I may, is the sequence of what happened. So you joined in Manchester, then you went to Innsworth, and because they were caught out without all the facilities thy had to give you bedding which was straw, in a bag actually. But what were the facilities like? So what they call ablutions is where you wash and clean, what were they like? What was it?
JC: Well, it was just a hut from the, you know, from our billet, a row of hand basins and a row of toilets with three quarter doors on. Concrete floors and duck boards. If they hadn't been burnt the night before to keep warm.
CB: Right.
JC: Is that what you wanted?
CB: Yeah, yeah. So what were the purpose of the duck boards?
JC: To keep you off the concrete floor. For comfort, if you please.
CB: Okay. And how many toilets and washbasins would there be in this block, roughly? Twenty?
JC: I don't think that many. Perhaps a dozen or so. Ten to twelve.
CB: You were on a barrack block of some kind, were you?
JC: Oh yeah.
CB: Was it wooden, or was it a concrete hut?
JC: Is was wooden huts.
CB: Okay. And how many in your hut, roughly?
JC: About eighteen, I would think. But on all other camps I did sleep in Nissan huts, on bunks.
CB: Yes. Okay, and was there an NCO in charge?
JC: Yes, in the cabin, at the front.
CB: And what rank would that NCO be?
JC: Corporal or Sergeant, on other ranks, you know.
CB: Okay. Right. So here we're talking about the Woman's Auxiliary Air Force, so all your reporting line was women? So the Corporal was a woman?
JC: Oh yes.
CB: And so it was segregated from the men?
JC: The men daren't come into the WAAF lines at all.
CB: So, they're in a separate part of the camp?
JC: Yes.
CB: Okay. And did you eat together?
JC: Well, in the kitchens you ate in the kitchen.
CB: I meant the WAAFs in general.
JC: We would (unclear) when we could. Because we were supplied from headquarters, because we were permanent staff on the camp, but we did better by just staying in the kitchen where we were.
CB: Right. I'm talking about the training, so in the training area, in this first, while you were at Innsworth-
JC: I wasn't trained cook there.
CB: I know, but in that training-
JC: Oh yes, yes, all the recruits ate together.
CB: And they were separated, you were separated from the men.
JC: Don't remember any men there at all.
CB: Right. Okay. And then at the end, you then went, you said, to cookery school at Melksham. So what happened there?
JC: We were taught our drill there, you know.
CB: At Innsworth? Okay. How did you get on with drill?
JC: I think I marched more than any other WAAF in the RAF.
CB: Oh. Why was that?
JC: Shall I show him why? (rustle of paper).
CB: I'll have a look in a minute.
JC: (Loud rustling) I'd rather you saw that.
CB: Okay, we'll stop. (Noise of tape machine being turned off)
CB: So you were saying you did more marching. That was because, what did you do? (Pause) You did more marching at Innsworth because of -.
JC: No I didn't, that was where I was taught to march. But we'll go back to that when you round to it.
CB: Oh, okay. That's fine.
JC: Because I could march, I was chosen to do that.
CB: Do do what? What was that? What was it called.
JC: It was Group Captain Innsworth Personal Band.
CB: Right. So that's really important, because these, some of these organisations had more activities than others. I'll stop it.
JC: Even though I shouldn't have done it.
CB: So the Group Captain at Innsworth, what was he?
JC: No, it wasn't at Innsworth. This is all out of context now, see. I was at Melksham.
CB: OK, at Melksham.
JC: I worked about twelve or eighteen months in the kitchens.
CB: At Melksham, so where's that
JC: No. That was the School of Cookery, Melksham.
CB: Right. Yes, so lets go to the school of cookery. What happened then?
JC: And I was posted from there as an SACW (unclear) Two to Wilmslow. It was a PDC, Personnel Dispatch Centre, where they bought all the boys in who were to be sent overseas. Thousands of them. And they ring in my ears still. We had to give them their dry rations. They were trained there, and lectured, and all the rest of it. And two 'o clock, three 'o clock in the morning you could here them going down to the station (beats on the table simulating marching), off to Liverpool. How many came back? How many thousands did us WRAF cooks kiss goodnight to? Can you imagine?
CB: Well, I imagine this is the bit that we need to build in to this whole thing.
JC: When it comes to Remembrance Sunday I'd rather sit on my own, because I wonder how many of those boys never came back home. Nobody understands that, do they?
CB: No. That's why we're doing this on the tape.
JC: That was very -
CB: Emotional?
JC: Yes. In retrospect, not at the time.
CB: So, that's the interesting point, isn't it? So at the time, how did you handle the strain of that?
JC: Well, as well as we could. We did it. We had to do it, we did it. There was no argument about it. You did it. We just got on well together, and did it.
CB: And these were all Air Force people?
JC: Oh yes. They were all airmen. Eighteen, nineteen.
CB: And what was their attitude to what they were doing?
JC: Oh, they were upset weren't they? Some of them cried, some of them wanted to be big men.
CB: Had they been away from home before, or was it all new?
JC: No, most of them hadn't.
CB: Right. And did they know where they were going?
JC: I don't know. We WAAFs kept our mouths shut, and we weren't told what we didn't have to know.
CB: But they were being sent abroad, is what you are saying?
JC: Oh we knew they were going, and we knew what time they were going, but we were sworn to not tell anybody.
CB: This is important, yes. And do you know why they were moved, went in the night?
JC: Of course, secrecy. Down to Liverpool docks. We knew where they we going, but we only knew through NCOs and people who'd confide in us, of course. We weren't told officially. (Long pause). That was that.
CB: Good. How long where you there at Wilmslow?
JC: I'm just trying to think where I went from – I was moved a time or two to fill vacancies. One was up at Crannidge where some of the grounded crews were on rest, where I worked for a few weeks up there in a field kitchen. And Leslie Greenhouse was there. Do you remember me telling you about that (aside). (Pause) And I also went down to St Athan for a few weeks, where I fell in a boiler of boiling vegetable marrow (laughs). Yes.
CB: What was the effect of that?
JC: Well, the effect, the outcome of it was very amusing, actually. I was bandaged from here to here and put in sick bay, and prior to that hams had been missing. Nobody knew where the hams were going. But Jane's sat up in bed in the sick bay, and where the food was kept one of the civilian men, workers on the camp, was going through with a bucket, pinching the ham that was hung into the bucket. (laughs) So I did a bit of detective work there.
CB: So he caught in the end, did he?
JC: Oh yes. That's funny.
CB: Yes. Absolutely.
JC: Richard Murdoch was on that camp.
CB: Was he?
JC: Then I was sent back to Wilmslow. And I worked in the catering office then, this time at Wilmslow. Next door to the office where Ivor Moreton and Dave Kaye, have you heard of those? And two pianos, do you remember them? Busy Fingers. They were two airmen.
CB: And what were they doing?
JC: They were working for BBC in Air Force Blue. And pinching my fire! On a shovel, and into their stove. We had fun, as well.
CB: So what was their actual job?
JC: I think they must have been AGCs, I couldn't think anything else. But also at two camps, Wilmslow and Skegness, was Stanley Tudor who played the organ at the Gaumont in Manchester. And he was always missing. You could hear him on the radio, and he was sweeping out at the NAAFI.
CB: And he was a well known organist?
JC: Oh yes. You've heard of him?
CB: No. It's just what you said, only what you said. So, you went back -
JC: That's where the Lincolnshire bit comes in.
CB: You went back to Linc-, Wilmslow, then you went to Skegness.
JC: Yes.
CB: And what was happening at Skegness, what was it?
JC: Again, recruiting, technical training, command. You know Skegness was taken over by the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force.
CB: Right.
JC: All the infantry were in Skegness, the RAF was at Skegness, and the Navy was up at Butlin's. You know about that?
CB: No.
JC: HMS Royal Arthur. Lord HaHa, what was he called, Lord Haw Haw, he said they'd sunk it. And it was Butlin's camp at Skegness. All this is quite true, you know. And that was where I joined this band.
CB: Yes. Right. So,-
JC: He wanted some WAAFs in it, he thought WAAFs should be in it.
CB: Right, but at Skegness, were you -
JC: I was working at the Imperial.
CB: Yes, but were they Air Force people only?
JC: Oh, no. The Infantry were up at the South.
CB: No. Where you were cooking, were you cooking just for the RAF? Or were you cooking -
JC: Oh yes, only for the RAF. You didn't cook for anybody else.
CB: Right. OK.
JC: The Army cooked for themselves. They were a different thing altogether.
CB: So, where were you in the, what hotel were you in?
JC: The South Parade Hotel. I can remember that. Next door (laughs) dare I tell him this one? Every morning, well not every morning, a WAAF had to go out with one of the SB's to do the early calls, to people on early duty. It was pitch black, you know, very early in the morning. I wouldn't sit on the cross bar of these bikes, because I couldn't do it, but one day, in the dark, I went into the wrong mess, didn't I? I'm going up the stairs shouting, 'come on, wakey, wakey, rise and shine', all the rest of it, opened the doors and there were all brown boots, I was in the Army officer's bedroom (laughs). I went downstairs about two at a time. Shall I tell you what I said to the SB, I said, 'hang on to that cross bar, and peddle like bloody hell', I said, 'get me out of this'. And he never reported it. Now he was a decent man, wasn't he? He realised what had gone wrong. I saw this row of brown boots (chuckles). There were a lot of funny experiences like that.
CB: That's it, What else?
JC: At Skegness, Group Captain Insall came in, he'd had this band with him at Padgate.
CB: So what was his name? Group Captain -
JC: Group Captain Insall. His name's there.
CB: Yes. And he was a VC?
JC: He got a Military Cross in the Army, lost his arm. You've heard about it?
CB: A Military Cross in the Army? Go on.
JC: I don't know how he got the VC, but he was a pilot, of course. And that's how I came to be there. He called me the Yorkshire girl, I'm not a Yorkie, but he always referred to me as the Yorkshire girl. I think he did it to annoy me.
CB: Right, right. He was close. Yes. Ok. So, he was commanding the -
JC: The whole issue.
CB: The whole Air Force issue?
JC: No, not the whole Air Force, just the personnel in Skegness, the (unclear) camps there.
CB: Right. And so what did he want? (Pause) He wanted his own band, yeah? So how did you get in to be a member of his band?
JC: I don't know, think they asked us to go and volunteer. Several of us went along.
CB: But was that because you'd done music before you joined the RAF?
JC: No, I don't know anything about music, not even now.
CB: So what were you playing, in the band?
JC: A drum.
CB: Right. How did you learn how to play the drum?
JC: Oh, little wooden things with rubber, you know? Can you imagine? About that big with a rubber circle.
CB: To learn. Who taught you?
JC: This fellow here.
CB: He was the band master, was he?
JC: No, he was the drum. The Leading Tipper. The Pipe Major was the one stood next to Captain Insall, that's Sergeant Watkinshaw. They were bagpipes, makes it even worse.
CB: So you enjoyed that, did you?
JC: Yes. It got me out the kitchen. Many times. We used to play in Bedford. You know, they had Wings For Victory week and what was the one to get money for warships? There's one in the council offices here (pause) oh, dear.
CB: So they ran fund raise events for the war.
JC: Yes, they used to have the parades in Bedford because the Americans were there. Betty married one.
CB: So how did you meet your American?
JC: How did I? I didn't marry an American. I wouldn't have ought to do with them. (whispers) Don't tell Betty.
CB: Ah, Betty married one.
JC: I just, I was frightened of them, actually.
CB: So he went to a number of these events himself, and took his band with him, is that what it was?
JC: No he didn't. He -
CB: He just sent the band.
JC: Whan he was moved from Skegness, Captain Insall, Group Captain Insall, he was taken to Cardington camp, sent to Cardington camp, and he took every member what's on this picture with him, was posted to Cardington camp.
CB: Right. So when was that? Roughly. You'd been at Skegness for a while.
JC: Yes, quite a long time. (pause) I came out in forty six didn't I, so will be end of forty four.
CB: OK. So you moved to Cardington yourself.
JC: That's right. And I was demobbed from Cardington.
CB: And what did you do at Cardington?
JC: I worked in the catering office, I worked on the bread wagon, I worked on the wet ration wagon, I used to go out every morning with two big trucks, two old civilian drivers, and I had six Italian or German prisoners.
CB: POW's. Yes.
JC: I used to go up to Turvey, to collect the rations, you know, sort them in, sort them out when I got back. And there was a Captain from your lot there. Nichola Woods. Don't know if he's still alive. He maybe.
CB: What's his name?
JC: I can't remember. He had a great big moustache like Jimmy Edwards. And I used to ask for cigarettes for the prisoners. 'If you'll come in the rum store and give me a kiss, I'll give you some cigarettes'. (Laughs) So I went in that rum store, and I gave them some cigarettes. They weren't all bad lads, you know.
CB: So you went out in the trucks to get the local produce.
JC: I went out out, yes, every morning, with two big trucks. Which supplied the whole of the camp. Which had five wings, Cardington.
CB: So what was happening at Cardington?
JC: Technical training. Oh, another interesting thing that happened there, when they liberated Holland, all the Dutch boys came to Cardington to be trained in the RAF. That was quite a, well, it was different. We couldn't understand each other at all. And they planted marigolds all over Cardington camp, it was one mass of orange marigolds. If that's of any interest to anybody, which I don't suppose it is.
CB: Well it is. It is, because it's the significant point about, it's their colour, isn't it, of Holland?
JC: There are two Dutch boys here on this photograph.
CB: It's called, the Royalty, is called the House of Orange, isn't it?
JC: It is, yes. And, oh, I know what. That Queen Willomena, I've got that photograph at home. She came to the camp to decorate two of her pilots. And she spoke to me.
CB: Did she?
JC: Yes. And I couldn't tell what she said, but her interpreter said that she said, 'how do you keep up with these men with your little legs?' (chuckles) That's all I know.
CB: Amazing. Yes. And what else, did you, were you demobbed from Cardington?
JC: I was demobbed from Cardington, at Withall in Birmingham.
CB: Right.(Pause)
JC: I'm sure none of this stuff's of any use to you whatsoever.
CB: It's all vital. Just going back.
JC: I told you I'd never done anything interesting.
CB: Going back to the earlier stages, the reason for having this is because people today have no idea what happened in those days
JC: They don't know who we were.
CB: They don't. They don't even know war. So, when you went to Melksham to train for catering; what happened there? What did they do?
JC: Well, lectures, that's where I did butchery there.
CB: So they taught you butchery. What else did they teach you?
JC: Cookery.
CB: And how did they do that?
JC: It was just like going to school, actually, (unclear), you know
CB: Because the military kitchens catered for lots of people, their equipment was a bit different from being at home.
JC: Ooo, two and three thousand we catered, I have catered up to four thousand at the height of the war.
CB: Right. So what was the equipment like, to be able to do that?
JC: Well, there were big boilers. Have you not seen them, you must have seen them. I took (unclear) of that book with all the pictures in, didn't I? Picture of Lady (unclear) and the WAAF Assoiciation. Massive big boilers.
CB: Right. Big ovens, were there?
JC: Oh yes, big ovens. See, that would be the kitchen, and here was the stoker, and here were steamers, I can see the kitchen, there were six boilers, and there some friers, and there the servers, the NCO servers.
CB: And were they running on gas or coal?
JC: No, they were on coal.
CB: Right. So the stokers were putting coal into them.
JC: Yeah, all night along he was there, it was kept going all the time. Supplied the hot water and the boilers and whatever, the ovens. Hard work.
CB: Yeah. And washing up? How was that handled?
JC: That was done by the SHDD's, and they had washing up machines of a kind, great big, with water coming down, they'd tray them up and put them in thingeys.
CB: So, you did butchering, you did cookery
JC: Field cookery.
CB: Field cookery, so what was the technique for field cookery?
JC: At Skegness I used to go up with them, when it was my turn to do that, to Gibralter Point, where there was a shooting range. And two used to go up there, and you had to build a kitchen with biscuit tins filled with sand, make your own oven (coughs), and cook a meal. For the boys that were up there doing rifle training.
CB: So you filled the tins with sand to make the sides. What did you put on top?
JC: Ee gum, I can't remember that that.
CB: Big slab of steel, was it?
JC: Oh no, nothing sealed it. Oh, you mean for the fire.
CB: For the cooking on the top.
JC: I suppose it was grids, grills. I can't remember every detail, you know.
CB: That's ok.
JC: The highlight of the day was the officer would let you use the rifle, so you could lie at side of him and fire the rifle (laughs).
CB: So you became good at shooting, did you?
JC: Only once. I hurt my shoulder, I didn't do it again. (chuckles) Just once.
CB: What would the menu normally be in the morning?
JC: Porridge. Maybe a fried egg on fried bread, or bacon and tomato. It's all there, in that book.
CB: Good. OK. Then for lunch, what did people have there?
JC: It's all there in that book.
CB: Yeah, but what was it?
JC: A lot of brown stew. We did roast beef, you know, and all the rest of it. And pies, we made pies. They were big pies that were cut up, you know.
CB: And what did the vegetables?
JC: I was just telling Nina, there were big troughs, as big as this.
CB: So maybe three or four feet wide.
JC: Five or six of us, maybe more, up, on our knees, making pastry. Rubbing in the fat into the flour.
CB: And was this on large wooden blocks, that you were making the pastry?
JC: It was concrete floors.
CB: Oh, you made it directly on the concrete floor.
JC: No, they were big troughs, big wooden troughs.
CB: But when you made the pastry?
JC: Oh no. Roll it. To roll it we had tables, and bits. (Aside) Thanks Neil, I'm glad you came.
CB: And then put it into the troughs. Yeah. Ok.
JC: No, you took it out of the troughs into a Hobart mixer where you mix- can you make pastry, by the way?
CB: I'll try later.
JC: You put water in to make it into pastry, and then you rolled it out into these big square tins.
CB: And then te food was in, er, various troughs, but how was it dispensed to the troops? They had to
JC: Oh, sorry, sorry. Yes. Well it went into a servery. Hot plates. You must have seen those, surely. You must have used one of those. With big cupboards.
CB: So there were coal fires underneath?
JC: And then someone, one of the NCO's, would shout 'servery', and everyone had to go and make themselves look respectable. To make sure your hair was tied up in the turban, your hands were clean, and you had to show that your hands were clean. And then we had to, whatever, you know, if you were doing potatoes, you did potatoes. You slid it off with a knife.
CB: Did you give them a choice, or did they have what you gave them?
JC: No, they got what they were given.
CB: And after the main course, they had a pudding?
JC: A sweet, yes.
CB: What did they have for that?
JC: Rice pudding, we made rice puddings, Manchester Tart was a favourite, that was back to pastry. With the jam and the custard. There were various things, don't ask me to remember.
CB: Wholesome things, for people that were energetic?
JC: Pardon.
CB: Wholesome. Food.
JC: There was nothing wrong with it whatsoever.
CB: Exactly. And ten for their evening meal. What did they get for that?
JC: Well, I can't remember that. I know, I know, pease pudding and savaloy, that was one. Another was a herring, they'd get a herring. I can see know, we had a big tub at the side, chopping the heads off the herrings. You get used to it, you know. You can get to it.
CB: At Skegness -
JC: Oh, Spam sandwiches. Spam in a sandwich was one. Beans, baked beans. They all came from America, of course.
CB: And because you were on the coast at Skegness, did you get a lot of fish? Or nothing to do with that?
JC: No. There was no fish at Skegness in those days.
CB: Was there fish normally on the menu?
JC: Well, there was Grimsby, I don't remember fish actually, no. Only herrings, that's all (unclear)
CB: Ok. That's for the airmen, did you do cooking in the Officer's Mess as well?
JC: No. (unclear)
CB: Did they have a different menu there, or was it all the same?
JC: Oh, yes. Of course. Of course.
CB: Did you know what the menu was?
JC: (pause) Oh, it's gone.
CB: That's where they had some cakes, was it?
JC: Oh, The Countess (pause), doesn't matter. She was at our WAAF Association, Diane, Countess of Ilchester, you've heard of her? She was a waitress in the Officer's Mess. She used to say, 'I was in charge of the salt and pepper'. (chuckles) She was nice, Diane. She would only be called Diane, you know. Mustn't refer to her as anything else. She was doing a far more menial job than I was doing.
CB: And proud of it.
JC: She was lovely. You know the story about (unclear) went in to the Observer? He'd come back from doing, what do they call it, well he'd been out on a raid, whatever, and he was having a bath, and the siren went, and this is absolutely true, it was printed in the newspaper at his death, and all the WAAF's were in their own air raid shelter, of course, because the sirens had gone, and he ran in naked, the Earl of Ilchester. And Diane was at the back, and she shouted. 'he's mine!'. And he married her. (Laughs) You ask Betty, she knows that story.
CB: So how did the liaison go with men in the Air Force, then? The relationships.
JC: Oh fine. You got some rough stuff, you know, didn't you. Some were a bit cheeky, went a bit too far. I never experienced anything really bad. One Corporal smacked my bottom one day as he walked past, and I picked up a dipper and smacked him round the face with it, and he said, 'You're on a charge'. (Laughs) That's true.
CB: And what happened?
JC: Nothing. He daren't, dare he? That was Corporal Lombardinerie, the pastry bloke. Hmm. He didn't do it again.
CB: We'll stop there for a mo.
CB: So clearly, in the catering system in London there were people who were fairly sophisticated chefs. Did the Air Force use these people to train you?
JC: They used them to work in the cook-house. They used them as cooks, we were all the same. There was two grades. There was a cook or a cook-butcher. One got a bit more money than the other, perhaps it was coppers.
CB: What did the cook-butcher do? That was different?
JC: They could say to you go on cutting meat up or whatever.
CB: Right. So it's knowing how to cut the meat that's the butchering, is it?
JC: Oh yes. We had to, what I couldn’t do, draw the animal, you know, like you see in the butcher's shops. I know how to buy a piece of meat, don't I?
CB: But the animals came in slaughtered?
JC: Oh yes.
CB: But not cut up?
JC: That's right.
CB: Soi that's why the cook-butcher was there, to convert that into the -
JC: We had a Polish butcher there, too. He was horrible.
CB: So did you, bearing in mind that the animal is whole when it arrives, did you do steaks as a result of that? Or chops?
JC: Well if they did that, I never saw any. I think they may have gone to the Officer's Mess.
CB: So the meat was mixed up was it?
JC: That's what I used to collect from Turvey, the wet rations. The dry rations were supplied by the NAAFI, that was the sugar, the flour, the salt. And all the, all the wet rations came from Royal Army Service Corps.
CB: Right. And they supplied the RAF because they dealt with everybody's catering. And what about the hierarchy? So you were working as a chef, effectively.
JC: Cook. They call them chefs now, they've gone all posh now.
CB: Cook, yes. So you were, what rank were you when you finished?
JC: When I finished? Well, I did two courses at Wilmslow for promotion to NCO, but if I'd gone I couldn't have stayed with the band, and I wanted to stay because I was enjoying my little bit.
CB: So what was your rank?
JC: LACW. But I did have a Good Conduct stripe, so now you know I'm (unclear)
CB: Right. That's really good.
JC: (Rustle of paper) There it is, see.
CB: I can see it on your picture.
JC: (Laughs) So I did behave myself a little bit. There's some they never found out about, or heard about, of course (chuckles).
CB: In the kitchen, what was the hierarchy there? There were Corporals, and/or Sergeants?
JC: Oh yes. There'd be so many ACW 2's, so many 1, LACW Corporal, Sergeant, Flight Sergeant, and Warrant Officer, because they were big kitchens, you know. But the Warn Officer would hv two or three kitchens, it wouldn't be confined to the one.
CB: How many people would be in a kitchen, roughly?
JC: You mean really working? Perhaps seven or eight. In the back, where the ACHG is, mostly men, doing the potatoes and all the wet stuff.
CB: The dangerous stuff with the knives.
JC: They were members of this band.
CB: Were they? Yep.
JC: Shall I tell him the other bit? There was a photographer at headquarters in Skeg, no, in Cardington. And this was the day Queen Willomena came to the camp. You can see all the top brass here. And this photographer thought I was a bit of alright. So he took my photograph, so like an idiot I walked into the potato room and said, 'who is the smartest member of this band? Well, I am.' And do you know what they did? They picked me up and dropped me in the potato thing, full of water and potatoes. (laughs)
CB: Not very nice. How did that effect the flavour?
JC: Haven't a clue. (laughs). But that's what happened.
CB: So you then had to put your uniform to the wash.
JC: That's right.
CB: I'm just going to stop again.
JC: Blimey, Charlie. I met my husband at the Royal Air Force Association in Edgware, at the Station Hotel.
CB: When was that?
NH: Was it after the war finished, Jane?
JB: Gosh, it must be nineteen forty nine, because Peter was born nineteen fifty, wasn't he?
CB: Ok, forty nine. And what were you doing there?
JB: I was working in the office at Ferrodo, Kings Cross. Because I couldn't settle back here. And I had a boyfriend who worked in the bank, the National Provincial, an airman. And I went down to be with him, originally. Went to the club because he'd lost all his training, he was apprentice aircrew (unclear), and that's where I met my first husband. And he was an Italian.
CB: What was his name?
JB: John Branner. And his father was the Managing Director of Gamba shoes, Soho, have you heard of them?
CB: I have. Yes. So he always wore good shoes.
JB: Do you know him?
CB: No.
JB: You don't know him, well I can carry on then. They were Roman Catholics, we did like, you think you've fallen in love, don't you, and you get married, and I wasn't good enough for his family.
CB: Because you weren't a Catholic.
JB: Yes. Straight on the head.
CB: And they wanted you to convert, did they?
JB: Unfortunately there was a child on the way, and he left me six weeks before Peter was born, with no home, and half a crown.
CB: Good god.
JB: And they fought me and fought me, and they never got anywhere. And it was all very sad. And it still is sad, isn't it?
CB: Yes.
JB: Then, when Peter was sixteen, his maintenance from that father, oh, I'll tell you what they did, they said he was only earning eight pounds a week, so they put him on the payroll, at the shop.
CB: This is John Branner?
JB: Yes. So they didn't have to pay maintenance. I had two pounds ten shillings a week. I rented a cottage here in this village for seven and sixpence a week, and I brought him up. When Peter was sixteen his maintenance stopped, but Peter was still at college in Buxton, and I needed money to keep him, fares, 'til he was eighteen years on. Well, it went on and on, they kept saying the case wasn't prepared, so my solicitor said, 'well, the thing to do Jane, is to apply to the National Assistance Board,' he said, 'and they will make you a payment, but you'll have to give it them back, because they've got to pay all the back money that is owing to you, obviously'. And, dare I tell him? (chuckles)
CB: Go on.
JB: The man that came stood on my doorstep, he had a suitcase in his hand, and he walked in and said, 'what a beautiful little home you've got here, I'd give anything to live here.' And that man proposed to me the week after.
CB: And his name was?
JC: John Carrington. And (pause), what was it he said?
NH: He'd been looking for you.
JC: He wanted to take me somewhere, I said, 'no', I said, 'I can't go anywhere, I've got a little job that I can't afford to lose.' There was a dentist in the village, and me and my friend who's deaf, and his wife still is, and I used to babysit their three children, look after them. I said I'd got to go. 'And where's this?' An I explained to him where, and all the rest of it. And at night o' clock that night there was a knock on the door (knocks), I opened the door, and there he was stood on the step. 'And what are you doing here,' I said. He said, 'I've come to tell you I've been looking for you for fifty years, and I'm never going to let you out of my sight again. And he never did.
CB: Fantastic.
JC: He was the most wonderful husband. He bought me the most expensive jewellery, (unclear). And he'd been a bachelor, and he'd also served in Burma. He was an Executive Officer in the Civil Service. He was General Christensen's wireless operator on his aeroplane. Three and a half years, wasn't he, in Burma. And life was sweet all at once. Shall I carry on?
CB: Yes, keep going, I want to hear it.
JC: And do you know, that son of mine has never spoken to me since. (long pause) He would walk past me in the street, wouldn't he. I gave him my all.
CB: Did he ever have any contact with his father?
JC: No, he went down. I took him three times down. The first time I took him Peter was three months old, I still had friends, I lived in Mill Hill, with friends, they were still friends. He walked out of the shop with me, and we had a coffee, and he said, 'I'm going to look for a flat, Jane.' I never heard from him again. So I took him again, but his father made sure he didn't see him. And Peter's been down on his own, and they've turned him away. I bought in iPad, that might amuse you at ninety odd, but I did.
CB: Very impressive.
JC: And I found out on that iPad his mother, who caused the trouble, died when she was sixty. He died in twenty three, been dead a long time, his father. And they must have left a terrific lot of money.
CB: Did John Branner marry again?
JC: And they had a house in St John's Wood, London, on erm, what's it called Barrack? Oh I don't know what it's called, well I do know, it'll come to me in a minute, when my mind, it's delayed action. And I found out on the iPad, it's been rented since his death for four thousand, four hundred and forty one pounds a month, so that house must be worth well over a million pounds, mustn't it? And Peter never got a penny. And I think that's wrong. Whatever they thought about me should not effect Peter.
CB: No. What happened to Peter?
JC: Well, I don't know what's happening, Nina knows more about him than me, she lives next to him, don't you?
CB: But he's local, is he?
NH: He lives in Chapel. He's retired now, he was working at Swizzles, wasn't he? He was a foreman there, at the sweet factory.
CB Very distressing. Extraordinary.
JC: It's not good news.
CB: Did John Branner have any brothers or sisters?
JC: No.
CB: Right. And did he re-marry after divorcing you?
JC: No. But, shall I tell you more? It's nought to do with this thing.
CB: No, but it is because it's part of your life.
JC: It isn't my life, it's his life. I found out from my iPad he's living with a Mary (aside) what was her other name?
NH: I don't know, I can't remember.
JC: Tommy Cooper's mistress, whose husband was a composer. They're all in the theatrical. Mary what? Kay! Mary Kay, K-A-Y, Kay. I found out all this on my computer, I mean the iPad.
CB: Amazing. How old was John Carrington when he died?
JC: He was born in nineteen twenty three, and he died in two thousand and three. Eighty, was he, eighty one, eighty two. He was an airman. And I think they took advantage because his father was reporting to the police station every week.
CB: John Carrington?
JC: John Carr-, John Branner's father. My first father in law. And he goes along, and he couldn't have a commission because his father's, do you get the message? So do you know what job they gave him? Bomb loader. I thought that was very pointed. I don't think he should have been, I don't think he was deserving of that. Because he was British, a British subject. He was born, I think on Wardour Street. There you are, that's nothing to do with the -
CB: Well , it's part of your life isn't it? John Carrington died in two thousand and three?
JC: Yes.
NH: No, you're getting mixed up.
CB: I'm going to stop this.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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Interview with Jane Carrington
Creator
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Chris Brockbank
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Date
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2017-02-07
Format
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00:57:06 audio recording
Type
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Sound
Identifier
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ACarringtonJ170207
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Pending review
Pending OH summary
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This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Description
An account of the resource
Jane Carrington joined the Women's Auxiliary Air Force in 1942 at the age of 18. She served as a cook, and volunteered to join the band as a drummer. She discusses her time in the kitchens, the menus and the equipment they used.
Contributor
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Peter Adams
Language
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eng
Coverage
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Royal Air Force
Spatial Coverage
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Great Britain
England--Bedfordshire
England--Lincolnshire
England--Wiltshire
entertainment
ground personnel
Military Cross
military living conditions
military service conditions
RAF Cardington
RAF Melksham
RAF Skegness
sanitation
Women’s Auxiliary Air Force