MY first memories of the Second World War, was of Mr Chadwick our school master at Cherry Tree School telling us that in case of an air raid we must all take shelter under our desks.

This was to be a temporary measure until the air raid shelters were complete.

I can also remember my mother making blackout curtains and actually making me a skirt out of the bit of material that was left over.

My dad had joined up in the First World War under age at 15.

When he first tried, the recruitment officers threw him out, so he went to Blackpool and joined again up there.

This time he was successful - or was he? For he was wounded four times while fighting in France before he was 19.

At the start of the Second World War he decided that we should have a trench at the end of the garden complete with duck boards in the bottom to keep our feet dry and sandbags stacked high on the rim.

This was in addition to the steel Anderson Shelter which he had so well equipped that we could have lived in it for a month.

Now funnily enough I still have my gas mask and it's still in its cardboard box hung up near the front door - and that’s where its staying, ‘just in case’.

When \WWII broke out, my brother Tom did the same thing as dad did in the First - joined up under age - but as he was quite a big lad the Royal Marines accepted him.

Why am I saying the last war, for it seems as the Bible says 'that there will be wars and rumours of wars until the end of time'.

I was often sent to our local Co-op store to keep a place in the queue, when the word was out that they had just got in a delivery of goodies that were scarce, but not rationed.

And Oh! can you imagine the excitement and activity, the planning, and all the dressing up for the street party we had to celebrate when peace was declared.