About the contributor

I was born in 1935 and lived in Lancashire throughout WWII. I have very vivid memories about many aspects of the war from a child's perspective. Some of my earliest memories include the issuing and modifying of gas masks. Having to queue with my mum at the ARP shelter to have an additonal filter attached with sticking plaster to the base of my mask. I can also remember my mother and father having a heated disagreement about the gas mask issued for my baby brother, who screamed constantly when they tried to put him inside.

I now collect WWII original and WWII style clothing which my wife and I wear to WWII re-enactment events.

I'm very interested in purchasing a WWII navel officer's uniform since i have a beard and the navy was the only section of our military forces that permitted beards.