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DAVID ABERNETHIE

My home during WW2 was in Ealing, West London. I was only a boy at Junior School when war was declared on Sunday September 9th 1939. Little did I realise what was to come. My one memory from that Sunday was seeing a man on a cycle riding by our home with a ten helmet on his head, shouting "war is declared". From that night onwards it was goodbye to street lighting.
There was the early opportunity to be evacuated. It meant saying goodbye to some of my friends at school who would live somewhere in the country away from the cities which would prove to be a target for bombing raids. My parents did not wish me to go away. I think I was thankful for this. Very soon at school we were allocated gas masks, these had to be carried around in case of a gas attack. At my age it was hard to grasp the implications of all this war time activity.
By 1940 we were experiencing periods of nightly air raids. I found this very frightening at times. To hear the air raid sirens, usually in early evening, meant we must prepare for another disturbing night. Many families had air raid shelters either inside or outside of their homes. For various reasons my father decided that during localised bombing we would shelter under the stairs.
A lasting memory is the frightening red sky at night caused by the many fires often started by the fire (incendiary) bombs. Living in West London we would look to the east toward the City of London and the east end where the docks would be alight.
Many of us boys regularly collected shrapnel, small pieces from shells that had exploded overhead as enemy planes had been attacked overnight. The most frightening air raids came from the 'doodlebugs' - unmanned bombs. Suddenly the drone of the engine stopped and in a few seconds it had fallen to earth with a terrible explosion. A number fell close to our home but mercifully we were not hit.
I guess our early education suffered, school was often disrupted for various reasons and the number of staff was very limited.
At long last VE. (Victory in Europe) day arrived. Such a relief. During the war we all joined in days of prayer for the Nation. Now we were full of thanks to God. The calming, confident voice of Sir Winston Churchill was heard again on radio (no TV for us) announcing the 'end of hostility' in Europe. Tens of thousands celebrated in central London. As a young teenager I was allowed to join the crowds with my friend outside Buckingham Palace. "We want the King" was the constant cry until King George V1, with his family, including our present Queen, appeared on the balcony. It was a memorable moment when the King invited our war time leader Winston Churchill to join them on the palace balcony. It was an unforgettable day. The lights were on again after those dark years.

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