War Time Wedding

When war broke out in Septemebr 1939 I had been engaged to Gladys Comley for about two years. We had planned to marry in the Summer of 1940 but the outbreak of war was to change this.

I worked in the foundry of Brecknell, Munroe and Rodger's a vending machine manufacturer in Pennywell Road in Bristol. We parked our bikes in sheds on Zion Road along side Peacocks Stores. Every dinner hour I walked to the garage to meet a friend and then walked back to work again. It was during this time that we started to to talk to some of the girls who worked in Peacocks store.

The girs took notice of a cast metal motif of a swallow that was mounted on the front mudgard on my bike. One thing led to another and we undertook to make copies of the swallow for them. One of the Peacocks Girls was Gladys.

On the outbreak of war we decided to bring the wedding forward. The only days that we could have off work were at Christmas and so the wedding was arranged for Christmas Day at St. Luke's Church, Barton Hill.

I lived in Speedwell and Gladys lived on Beaufort Road , Barton Hill which was only a street away from the church.

The day began as any other Christmas day, then after a tradition dinner I travelled from Speeedwell directly to the church with my mother and brothers in a hired car. With fuel rationing this was not easy to arrange and only came about because of a close friend who used some of his personal allocation of fuel.

My eldest Brother Jim was my best man. Jim was subsequently killed on service in North Africa in Decemebr 1941, but that's another story.

After dropping the groom's wedding party at the church the car then picked up the bridal pary from Beaufort Road, Gladys's brother Fred stood in as 'father of the bride' and my sister Sarah was the bride's maid.

We were fortunate in being able to obtain the services of a photographer. We were only allowed four photographs, all of which we still have.

After the ceremony with the services of the car still available the bride and groon travelled back to Beaufort Road by car incorporating a grand tour of Barton Hill. This was to allow time for the remainder of the guests to arrive back at No 23 on foot before the arrival of the bride and groom.

Later in the evening we walked to Lawrence Hill where we caught a tram car to Whiteway Road (Yes! they ran on Christmas Day in those days, full Sunday Service - Fare 1½d) and then walked the remaining distance to Speedwell for further celebration.

There was no honeymoon, we had bought an air raid shelter with money that we had saved for the purpose. Home was to be at Beaufort Road, sharing the house with my mother-in law and brother-in law. We had left it a bit late to get the tram home, missed the last one, and so had to walk all the way back to Barton Hill, (about 3 miles). Gladys borrowed some plimsolls from my mother as her bridal shoes were rubbing.

Boxing day was a holiday and so the next day it was back to work!

By this time I was working at The Bristol Aeroplane Company at Filton, making engines for the Bristol Blenhiem and Bristol Beaufighter aeroplanes. (Filton was many years later to become famous as the British birthplace of Concorde.

We continued to live with my Mother in law, untill 1956, when we moved from Barton Hill to Brislington. Things were to dramatically change on August 14th 1941, the day before my birthday, when I recieved my call up papers for nation service.

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