Cheer Up, the War’s over!

This story was submitted to the People’s War website by Sarah Butcher of the CSV Action Desk at BBC Hereford and Worcester on behalf of Mrs Margaret Butcher and has been added to the site with her permission. The author fully understands the site’s terms and conditions.

Margaret’s mother took her to town on VE Day to see all the people cheering and happy but 5-year-old Margaret was tired and grisly. She clearly remembers her Mother saying to her “You can’t possibly be sad today as the war is over!”
However Margaret just remembers thinking that she would rather not be being made to walk anywhere that day, end of war or not!

Margaret also remembers being in North Wales in 1941 where they were collecting a relative whose wife had died. They were having chips for tea and they went to the fish shop with a china bowl which the chips were put directly into by the shop owner. That’s a great way to conserve paper!

Just after the war, a former neighbour of Margaret’s parents brought some bananas to the house and her mother said she would love it, but she didn’t, even after it had been dipped in sugar which itself was scarce! The adults were very surprised that she didn’t like the banana, even though it was the first time she’s ever seen one!

Also just after the war the whole family went on holiday to Coventry to stay with family friends, and they had to take their own bread with them as otherwise there wouldn’t have been enough for everyone to eat. Consequently the family had to take a taxi to the bus station which was a great extravagance, just so that they could carry all the bread they had to take with them!

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