I was 16 when war broke out and I distinctly remember us all sitting round the wireless waiting for the announcement. I can remember thinking, Gosh it’s going to be like the First World War. After that it was weeks and weeks before we heard anything of the war and then suddenly the sirens started to go. I’d just left school and was meant to start work at commercial college.

It was very similar to what we have recently lived through, except of course you could go out, providing everything was blacked out. Everybody danced in those days. First time I went out was to the Palais in Worksop. As they couldn’t put the lights on during blackout they brought motorbikes indoors and turned on their headlights to light up the dance floor. It was really exciting.