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Audrey Knowles has lived in Oulton her entire life. Born in August 1932; she was seven when World War Two began.

Audrey’s overriding memory of living through the war is the absence of her father. As a member of the Territorial Army he was soon called up to fight as a fully-fledged soldier. He was away for the final three years of the war. Posted in the Middle East, the only contact they had with him was through occasional letters.

When news of VE Day came through, Audrey remembers the excitement and the relief everyone felt. She recalls parties on Green Lea, where she lived and the anticipation of the families for the return of their loved owns.

Then aged thirteen; Audrey had a better understanding of what war meant when it was over and the devastation it had caused… but for her the real celebrations only started when her father returned home safe.

She recalls being woken by him in the middle of the night. It’s a feeling she can’t put into words, she says.

Image: Audrey as a child with her family.

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