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Interview with Coby Van Riel
Coby Van Riel was a child of about six when the Germans invaded Holland. She lived in a fishing port area of The Hague where her father had a number of jobs to make ends meet in the difficult days before the war and her mother ran a chemist shop. She…
Interview with Colin Deverell
Colin Deverell was born in Croydon. Upon leaving school, he worked for Oliver Typewriter Company, where he gained engineering skills to become an amateur rigger for Imperial Airways, before finding employment with Rollaston Aircraft Services in 1939.…
Interview with Delia Del Corto
Delia del Corto (b. 1932) remembers daily life in wartime Tuscany, living in a family of ten. Provides details on rural life, especially home bread making, and stresses the difficult coexistence with feared German troops. Mentions many anecdotes in…
Interview with Dennis Kelly
Dennis Kelly grew up in Australia and joined the Royal Australian Air Force aged 18. He flew operations as a wireless operator / air gunner with 467 Squadron from RAF Binbrook. His aircraft was shot down over France and he evaded capture with the…
Interview with Dirk Bosch
Dirk Bosch was eight years old when the German army occupied his home town of Amsterdam. In this interview he describes what life was like for him during this time. He refers to seeing Dutch Jews rounded up and deported. He describes the hunger of…
Interview with Edvige Colombo
Edvige Colombo recalls her life in wartime Milan. Describes when the alarm sounded and she and her family went to the basement used as a shelter. Recollects moments inside, re-emphasizing how there was nothing to do there, just standing waiting until…
Interview with Enrica Mariani
Enrica Mariani recollects her wartime experiences in Milan: her brother dying of bronchitis after spending too much time in the shelter and her father working in an armaments factory. The aggressive fascist militiamen and the long hours she spent in…
Interview with Ernest Frederick Gardiner
Fred Gardiner grew up in Oxfordshire and worked in a furniture factory before volunteering for the Royal Air Force. He flew five operations as a wireless operator / air gunner from RAF Syerston before his aircraft was shot down. He gives a detailed…
Interview with Ernest Holmes
Ernest Holmes joined the RAF and served as a pilot, flying operations first with 76 Squadron and then on Pathfinders. Gives a vivid and detailed account of when he was shot down over Holland: how he was given shelter by a farmer’s family and moved…
Interview with Fausta Maggioni
Fausta Maggioni recalls memories of her wartime life in Milan. She describes a sizeable shelter reinforced with wooden props, a little bag with the few valuables she had always to bring along, as well as the many duties of her father as warden, who…
Interview with Francesco Bozzi
Francesco Bozzi reminisces about his military training followed by service in Greece. Describes harsh living conditions while in Germany-occupied Crete after September 1943: hard labour, scarce food, punishment, brutalities, being wounded while…
Interview with Franco Nocchieri
Franco Nocchieri recalls his early years as an orphan in several different towns in the Province of Pavia. He describes the bombing of the Voghera railway station, which started while he was heading to school. He goes on to explain how he and his…
Interview with Frank Dell
Frank Dell’s father was a member of the Royal Flying Corps during the First World War and so it was perhaps inevitable that Frank would share the fascination with aviation and a desire to fly. As a teenager Frank witnessed the aerial battles of the…
Interview with Frederik Kroese
Frederik was born in 1924. He recalls the start of the German occupation. Frederik was asked to report to an office to go and work in Germany but chose instead to go into hiding. He was offered work in the resistance by the son of a secretary to…
Interview with Giglio Mazzi
Giglio Mazzi (b. 1927) recalls his early life in Reggio Emilia, born in a family with strong anti-fascist sentiments. Describes his first job at the Reggiane works, then at the local labour inspectorate where he was attached to a debris clearance…
Interview with Giovanni Delfino
Giovanni Delfino was at first evacuated to the Cremona area, where he could see the glow of the distant bombings. He then came back to Milan only to witness a bomb nearly missing his house and killing factory workers. He describes the gruesome sight…
Interview with Giovanni Oderda
Giovanni Oderda recollects the 8 September 1943 Dogliani bombing. Claims that the town was hit because partisans shaved a fascist woman; after the attack Giovanni and his family left the town. He and his brothers ended up in the partisan ranks where…
Interview with Giuliana Menichini Pereira
L’intervistata è Giuliana Menichini Pereira, nata a Pistoia il 31 gennaio 1928. Interviene il padre Pietro Menichini, è presente il marito Miguel Pereira. L’intervista è effettuata da Claudio Rosati a Pistoia, presso l’abitazione…
Interview with Giuseppe Pirovano
Giuseppe Pirovano remembers wartime memories as schoolboy at Affori, a Milan neighbourhood. Describes daily life in fascist youth organisations, with regimented schooling and political rallies. Mentions childrens plays and pastimes, such as…
Interview with Gordon Mellor. Four
Gordon Mellor successfully evaded capture when he baled out of his aircraft and landed in Germany. For several days he walked until he managed to make contact with the Belgian resistance and the Comete line who began the process of guiding him home.…
Interview with Gordon Mellor. One
Gordon Mellor grew up in London and was interested in aviation. He volunteered for the Air Force and trained as a navigator in Canada. On his return to the UK he and his crew were posted to 103 Squadron. Returning from an operation they were attacked…
Interview with Gordon Mellor. Three
Gordon Mellor grew up in London and hoped to become a quantity surveyor when he was called up. He volunteered for the Air Force and trained as a navigator in Canada. On his return to the UK he and his crew were posted to 103 Squadron at Elsham Wolds.…
Interview with Gordon Mellor. Two
Gordon Mellor grew up in London and was interested in aviation. He volunteered for the Air Force and trained as a navigator in Canada. On his return to the UK he and his crew were posted to 103 Squadron at Elsham Wolds and his first operation was the…
Interview with Gualtiero Silvio Cosolo
Gualtiero Silvio Cosolo recalls attending the Ceriani vocational school in Monfalcone, at this time the air raid siren went off every day and the children would run to the nearest shelter. Describes the 7 March 1944 bombing and the gruesome sight of…
Interview with Guido Di Blas and Ilario Bolletti
Guido Di Blas and Ilario Bolletti recount wartime memories associated with the town of Monfalcone and the surrounding area. Describes a severe night of bombing stressing the ominous sight of target indicators and loud explosions; recalls the massive…