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Blogmas Day 20 & 21: Christmas in Wartime


I love finding out about people's traditions and experiences of Christmas. I was really interested to find out what Christmas was like in wartime. I have obviously seen what Christmas was like on Downton Abbey but I know that for most people Christmas is not like that. I have also watched Wartime Farm on BBC Two to learn a bit more about the time and how it affected the country in more detail. This series was absolutely  fascinating and I think the farm should be used for educational purposes for schools and as a learning centre as well.

I was speaking to a friend about Christmas in wartime and my Blogmas post and she sent my questions to her uncle who was a child during WWII.

Q Tell me a bit about yourself?

I was born and raised in the East End of London and was four years old when the Second World War started. Our family consisted of my Mum and Dad, me and my brother Dave. The house we lived in was a small 2 up and 2 down terraced house, back garden, front garden, shed (for Dad who was a good woodworker). No bathroom, but we had a tin bath in which we bathed (separately) in front of an open fire every Friday night. When my brother and I were old enough we used the public baths on a Saturday morning, afterwards cups of hot Bovril – what memories.

Both my parents came from large families who all lived fairly near to each other, as was the trend in those days, very few families split up and moved away from each other. Our families on both my Mum’s side and my Dad’s side were fairly close knit, exchanging frequent visits and letters, no phones in those days.

When the War started Dad was called up into the Army and served in the Artillery for the duration of the War, coming home on leave on occasions.  The two families were very lucky no family member was injured or killed.

East London was a poor area of London and on reflection the people seemed stoic and hard working.  I remained at the same family address until my late teens when I moved out, amicably I hasten to add.

All in all I had a happy childhood, caring parents, was happy at school and did not commit any crimes, apart from scrumping apples. The last time I scrumped, I got caught by a policeman who boxed my ears and sent me on my way, threatening to tell my parents if I did it again – I never did!

Q What was it like in the Blitz at home and school?

School during the war was an experience, interrupted on lots of occasions by air raids.  When that happened all the classes of children went to the safety of the stairs, there we sat until the raid was over.  If the school had been hit by a bomb I don’t know how safe the stairs would have been.

I don’t know how many children were killed or bombed out, the school never told us.  If our street was bombed – we could go home!  Mine never was but my cousin’s was.

At school we had a daily spoonful of cod liver oil and a dose of malt, neither tasted brilliant. Once a week the ‘nit nurse’ used to visit and check the whole school for head lice and nits, fortunately I never had any, but plenty did. School dinners were okay.  I remember the semolina and meat puddings on occasions.      

Our area of London was heavily bombed which gave us children much in the way of shrapnel collecting, highly dangerous occupation, but we coped. At school we used to compare shrapnel collections similar to comparing conkers, marbles and cigarette cards. Other adventures included playing on bomb sites  in empty water tanks and bombed out houses, all highly dangerous but exciting.

Q How did you feel in the Blitz?

It was frightening at night when the sirens went off, but during the day it was okay.  We used to go to the swing park at the back of our house and watch the dog fights in the sky.  If it got too close the park keeper would let us go into his hut.  On reflection the hut was wooden and offered no protection, but the thought was there I suppose. These days we have an extra hour of daylight in the summer, during the war it was two hours.

The frightening things were the doodle bugs and V.2 rockets.  You could see and hear the doodle bugs but when their engines cut out, there were a few seconds of quiet until they exploded on the ground.  V.2 rockets were silent all the time and nobody saw them coming.

We never got bombed out, but a bomb dropped in next door’s garden but did not explode.  It was removed by the appropriate people.

My grandfather was bombed out and he and my grandma went to live with their daughter, my Auntie Beat and her family, in the next road.

My grandfather was an avid rose grower, and the next day when my grandma and Aunt went to the house to collect any salvageable items, my Grandfather dug all his roses up and transferred them to my Aunts.

Q Where were you evacuated to?

(women and children-3 million were moved to the countryside).

I was evacuated to a small farm in Suffolk in the summer of 1942.Mum came with me and brother who was a baby and Mum feeding him.I remember a village hall full of evacuees – villagers going round the hall choosing evacuees.The country was a culture shock.All that space and open air.At harvest time I followed a tractor with a big stick to catch the rabbits that were left in the field – but caught none!Small apple tree in the garden. First time I had seen an apple tree, was told by Mr. Vince the farmer that we could have wind falls.Went one better and got a rake and carried it on my shoulders around the tree knocking off the apples which I ate, but I did suffer from tummy ache and worse because the apples were far from ripe. It was all that space and open air.

After six months my Dad said it was okay to return home, which we did, but although the Blitz lasted from 1940-1941 there was still heavy bombing in our area until the end of the War.

Q What was it like at Christmas in the war, did you celebrate or not?

Yes we did celebrate Christmas. Christmas was exciting and full of fun even in the dark days of the war.  I don’t remember Father Christmas making an appearance until much later, about the time I didn’t believe in him, but my Brother did.

Q With rationing did you have anything special for Christmas included? What was the main dinner like? Did you have Christmas pudding? Did you get any free game (not included in rationing)?

Christmas Lunch was always chicken – only time of the year we had chicken.  Turkey not heard of yet, nor goose or duck.  Plenty of veg and potatoes.  Not sure what we had on Boxing Day but I know that my Mum and my Aunts donated lots of saved tins of food including savoury and sweet.  Savoury and sweet were cooked in separate pots, so dinner time was interesting.  Tea time and supper time were sandwiches and cake, jelly and blancmange.  With hindsight how did we cope with the fairly rich food for two days, ten adults, seven children and one loo?

The supply of food seemed to be okay, but I was too young to remember my Mum struggling to provide food, if she did.

Fish and chips were cheap, Snoek – a fish from Scandinavia was plentiful – it was okay.  Corned beef was also plentiful, looked upon as a cheap meal but research has since shown it was and still is full of protein.  I still like corned beef after all these years.

Once a week I used to go with Mum to the “British Restaurant” for a cheap highly subsidised meal.   Very few imports due to sinking of Merchant ships so veg and fruit were seasonal. Out of season – tinned stuff when we could get it.  I remember you could buy a ‘speckled apple’ (windfall) for halfpenny to a penny depending on its size.

Never saw a banana until well after the war.  Sweets were almost non existent and on ration as was most food and clothing.

Q Where did you celebrate Christmas?

Both families lived fairly near to each other, we didn’t travel far.  Cars were a no-no in those days and buses did not run on Christmas Day.  We used to visit my Mum’s family and Dad’s family on alternative Christmases.  My Dad had two brothers and two sisters, my Mum had one brother and three sisters.  My clearest memories were of going to my Dad’s family at Christmas time.

One of my Uncles had his own removal business and used to collect all my Aunts and Uncles and Cousins in his removal van.  Quite a bumpy dusty ride with us all hanging on to the ropes and sides of the van for dear life, bit scary, but fun – Health and Safety eat your heart out!!  As well as my Aunts and Uncles there were an assortment of seven children.  We normally stayed Christmas Day and Boxing Day before returning home.

Q What was the lead up to Christmas like?

The anticipation of Christmas at home with Mum and Dad and my brother was exciting.  I can’t remember any one particular Christmas but remember bits of some of them.

Normally Christmas began about a week before (as it did in many shops – no starting the season in September like nowadays!) Shopping was a daily occurrence especially food, no fridges or freezers in those days, only an outside larder.

Q How did  you decorate in Christmas wartime?

We would spend about a week making paper chains which we strung around the room.  We had to do this every year because they were not “save-able”. 

My Dad’s pride and joy was a lined box of Christmas lights which again were “strung” around the room.  I understand they were pre-war and he had previously made a lined box for them.  We had them for many years.  I would have loved to have had these now as a keepsake but they were lost many years ago.

Q What did you do Christmas Eve and Christmas Day throughout the day/evening?

 On Christmas Eve my Mum used to take us to the local open air market to shop, quite magical. I remember roasted chestnuts and a drink of hot sarsaparilla (similar in looks and taste to hot blackberry juice).

Lunchtime was a fairly strict regime with my Grandparents siting at the head of the table, the adults at the sides and the children on a separate table in the other room. 

Q Did you play games?

The afternoon was spent playing with my cousins, whilst the adults slept and had the occasional drink. 

After tea, festivities began in earnest, with lots of “parlour games” (everybody included).  All the men did a comedy turn, cue lots of laughter.  I can clearly remember my Dad and Uncle George dressing up and dancing on the table to the piano, played by my Aunty Beat (a self taught pianist).  Then the women would sing a medley of songs with the assistance of the piano.  The men and children would all join in. 

Q What did Christmas Day evening entail? 

Late into the evening then men settled down to playing cards and drinking beer.  The women drank port and lemon, and chatted and knitted.  Us children played with our “cracker” presents.

Eventually we all went to bed, children first, girl cousins all sleeping together on the floor with blankets, boy cousins also together with blankets on the floor.  I think all the women slept together as did the men.  I don’t think we got much sleep – too excited.

Q What was Boxing Day like?

Boxing Day almost the same format, but whilst my Mum and Aunts did the cooking, supping their ports and lemon, the men folk went to the pub for their pints of beer (no lager in those days).  After lunch, and the statutory snooze, festivities began all over again, this time the neighbours were invited to the party for a good old sing song. This sort of Christmas lasted for quite a few years, certainly until well after the War had ended.

Q Did you have a TV and did you watch the King's speech?

No radio, so no King’s speech and certainly no TV.  Various neighbours called around to wish us Happy Christmas and share a mince pie and a drink. 

Q Did you get any letters/presents from loved ones?  Did you have crackers?

We had one large cracker about five foot long suspended in the bay window and at the appropriate time one of my Uncles would put his arm in the end of the cracker and pull out a present – one present for each person including the children.  Present gathering during the year must have been quite an effort.

Q Did you have a tree and a stocking? What was included in the stocking?

A:I didn’t get much sleep Christmas Eve, our presents mysteriously

arrived in the night at the bottom of the bed in a pillow case.   Spent most of the night feeling the pillow case with my feet to see what I got.

(Mini:Something I used to do too, try and guess what we had got before we had gone into my parents' room and sat on their bed to open our stockings).

No such thing as a Christmas list in those days, we got what we were given.  I can remember eagerly sifting through the bag and discovering an apple, sometimes an orange, some biscuits, sweets (2oz bag of jelly babies) my favourite even to this day as Lizzy well knows!  No Christmas wrapping paper, normally brown paper with sticky paper or string.

(Mini:Such lovely memories and it makes me hanker for a more simple time with less focus on material things and more on just having fun and enjoying spending time with family.)

One year my main present was a size ‘O’ Mecanno set.  Another year a jigsaw puzzle, another year a John Bull printing set, another year a model aircraft kit from Balsa wood that was carved with a penknife.

No Father Christmas and no Christmas tree.  Christmas was simple and full of fun especially to a child.

Final Question: 

How does Christmas in the war compare to today's Christmases? Do you prefer the style of one Christmas over the other?

It is difficult to answer preference for Christmases then as against now. My Christmases then were through a child’s eyes, full of innocence and expectation surrounded by love.  Difficult to compare those feelings to the ones I have now, but I still enjoy Christmas with loved ones, whether playing games or doing nothing.

My thoughts:

Firstly I would like to say thank you to my wonderful friend's Uncle, Stan. I have really enjoyed reading about your experiences of Christmas in wartime and I  feel very privileged that you were happy to share that with me on my blog. You've made me laugh and cry and I have seen Christmas in a new light which is a great blessing and I hope to try to take some of your Christmas past traditions and take them with me into the future and include them in my Christmas traditions in years to come. I am trying to go back to handmade gifts and decorations and I hope that this makes up for our mass produced Christmases we seem to have nowadays. 

However we are very lucky to celebrate Christmas in the way that we do, especially in the UK, and although Christmas was simpler back in the war it still brought people great joy and comfort, and I love the fact the government sent out leaflets showing people how to make toys for Christmas as the toy factories had been converted into ammunition factories.

I also love the creativity and resourcefulness as food was in such short supply due to a lot of the German U-boats sinking our food ships. Turkeys were in short supply so recipes like murkey (mock turkey, which was sausage meat wrapped in bacon, with parsnips as legs) were popular.

Christmas presents for the adults were more practical and the mos

t popular gift was soap as the fat to make it was in short supply.

I found doing this post so fascinating and interesting and I hope to do more interviews like this as part of my blog and as part of being a WI member in the future. I am fascinated by this era, I am intrigued by the amazing resilience and resourcefulness of everyone to survive and I envy in  some ways how simple life truly was in terms of technology and day to day life/living (although I wouldn't be alive if I  had lived in that era because of my kidney disease.) I am always curious what my ancestors would have done in that era and what their story was. I am so very grateful to share stories like Stan's. I have thoroughly enjoyed doing research for this blog.

Toodles my little MurkeysXX


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