Category Archives: Uncategorized

Diary Entry: ‘Tea (sic) Lunch & tea C.H.S..’ Diary notes: ‘C.H.S.’ is Cumnor House School.

Diary Entry: ‘Went to Hendon to change engines at Vauxhall works. Biked Rumfold Misses Gardiner’. Diary notes: Miss Gardiner was a colleague of KPD’s at Cumnor House School. As often seems to have been the case, KPD remained friends after she left the post. 

Diary Entry: Bonsey & I went to “Dangerous Moonlight” Diary notes: ‘Bonsey’ was clearly a friend KPD made in the A.T.S., and with whom KPD spent some of her leisure time.  “Dangerous Moonlight” (or ‘Suicide Squad’ in the USA) is a 1941 GB war film starring Anton Walbrook and John Laurie. This is the film …

Continue reading “Diary Date: 11th May [1944]”

Diary Entry: Biked over to see R. Field. Diary notes: KPD had been to see ‘R. Field’ in hospital in Aldershot a week ago, so maybe this was another visit to an A.T.S. comrade.

Diary Entry: Took bike Camberley. Diary notes: Orpington to Camberley is some 45 miles, so it is unlikely KPD cycled there and back in a day, so it is more likely that KPD returned to her base in Surrey and cycled to Camberley from there.

Diary Entry: Hitched Hammersmith. Night home. Anthony there. Diary notes: As she did regularly during the war, KPD saved money by hitching (quite probably in her uniform). Home was, of course, her mother’s house in Orpington. Anthony, her closest brother (in age) was serving in a Searchlight Battalion and must have been on leave as …

Continue reading “Diary Date: 6th May [1944]”

Diary Entry: Tea Betty Jolly tea rooms Diary notes: Despite rationing, it’s good to see KPD could still visit a tearoom good enough to warrant mention in her diary!

Diary Entry: Mrs Whateley came to inspect. Had vehicle parade. Diary notes: A big day for KPD. ‘Mrs Whateley’ was actually Dame Leslie Violet Lucy Evelyn Whateley, DBE, TD, the Director of the A.T.S. during the Second World War. Hopefully she was impressed! For further information see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leslie_Whateley By Henry Lamb – http://media.iwm.org.uk/iwm/mediaLib//146/media-146640/large.jpgThis is photograph Art.IWM ART …

Continue reading “Diary Date: 4th May [1944]”

Diary Entry: Went to Ewhurst tea. Enjoyed seeing Joan & Allen. Diary notes: KPD’s diaries mention visiting Ewhurst (a small village in Surrey) on a number of occasions, and it seems to have been to see her friends the Davies, one of whom was called Joan, along with Allen, presumably a friend of Joan.

Diary Entry: Went to see R. Field Hosp. Aldershot Diary notes: Aldershot, of course, was (and still is) regarded as the home of the British Army, and ‘R. Field’ seems to have been a friend, or perhaps A.T.S. colleague apparently in hospital there.