Seaman, Joan Margaret (Oral history)

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Accepted Non-commercial Use

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Downloading audio-visual for non-commercial offline listening or viewing.
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Description

Object description

British civilian in London, GB, 1940-1941; aircraftwomen served as plotter with Women's Auxiliary Air Force at Headquarters, Fighter Command, RAF at RAF Bentley Priory, Stanmore, GB, 1943-1945; toured with Bentley Players in Germany, 8/1945

Content description

REEL 1 Background in GB, 1923-1939: education; learning to play piano; knowledge of events in Europe during 1930s; memories of outbreak of Second World War, 3/9/1939. Recollections of period as civilian in London, GB, 1940-1941: employment; attitude towards Second World War; impact of German Air Force attacks on daily life; disruption of public transport by bombing; reaction to hearing Prime Minister Winston Churchill's 'fight on the beaches' speech; devastation of London during bombing; public morale. REEL 2 Continues: Aspects of enlistment and training with Women's Auxiliary Air Force in GB, 1942: enlistment in Women's Auxiliary Air Force, 7/1942; reasons for joining Women's Auxiliary Air Force; issue of kit and uniform; kit inspections; class background of other girls on training course; training at RAF Bridgnorth; attitude towards NCOs; training at Leighton Buzzard. Recollections of period as plotter with Women's Auxiliary Air Force at Headquarters, Fighter Command, RAF Bentley Priory, Stanmore, GB, 1943-1945: description of plotting duties; working shifts; change in shift pattern as D-Day approached, 1944; visits by Very Important Persons (VIPs); additional duties; reprimanding male superior. REEL 3 Continues: attitude towards NCOs; impact of arrival of United States Army Air Force; story of teleprinter mistake that resulted in bombing of Sandhurst Road School, Catford, 20/1/1943; D-Day plotting, 6/6/1944; reaction to set backs during Operation Market Garden in Netherlands, 9/1944; visit by Group Captain Frederick Winterbotham; social life; attitude towards American airmen; opinion of British and American wartime music; social life. REEL 4 Continues: reaction to German V weapon attacks; story of how Margot Fonteyn and Robert Helpmann continued dancing as German V1 Flying Bomb dropped outside; morale in 1944; memories of first day off after finishing service in operations room; VE Day, 8/5/1945. Recollections of period as aircraftwoman with Bentley Players in Germany and Brussels, Belgium, 8/1945: reaction to devastation of the Ruhr, Germany; luxurious life style enjoyed by players; social life; plays performed by players; attitude towards Allied bombing of Germany; morale amongst German civilians. REEL 5 Continues: Aspects of demobilisation from Women's Auxiliary Air Force in GB, 1945: length of time taken to be demobbed; meeting future husband Alan Seaman at a dance the day before demobilisation; demobilisation; attitude towards service in Royal Air Force. Aspects of civilian life in GB, post-1945: adapting to civilian life; employment; opinion of new post-war fashion. Reflections on service as aircraftwoman with Women's Auxiliary Air Force in GB, 1942-1945: importance of female personnel in plotting rooms; attitude of Royal Air Force towards Women's Auxiliary Air Force; attitude towards Women's Royal Naval Service; public attitude towards women in the armed services; impact of wartime service on her life; attitude towards films and documentaries of Second World War; importance of recording her wartime experiences.

Object Details

Category: Sound
Related period: 1990 to the present day (production), Second World War (content), Second World War (association)
Creator: IWM (Production company)
Smith, Lyn E (Recorder)
Seaman, Joan Margaret (Interviewee/Speaker)
Production date: 1994-11-14
Dimensions: whole: Duration 150, Number Of Items 5
Catalogue number: 14821

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Seaman, Joan Margaret (Oral history)

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