Stan and Grace

 After a flurry of letters in the middle of June, the letters between 26th June and 5th July are missing.  Rather than leave people following the story with nothing to read, I thought that it would be interesting to have a glimpse of what life was like in 1942 from a different voice. The writer, J. B. Priestley, made a series of regular broadcasts on the BBC to the people of Britain during the war.  Between April 1940 and 1943 he also made broadcasts directed at the USA and the Commonwealth, to rally these countries to Britain's cause.  The text of some of these broadcasts has been gathered together in the book "Britain Speaks: J. B. Priestley takes on the Nazi war machine" by Austin Mitchell.   The following is taken from the broadcast of 18 June, 1942.  Priestley is speaking specifically to the USA, trying to explain what daily life is like for the British people during the war, as there appears to be a perception in the USA that things in Britain 'aren't too b

The Nurses Home General Hospital Nottingham Thursday, 12.30 p.m.    My Darling, I hoped by the time I wrote this letter I would know when my day off would be but as yet I do not.   I will let you know as soon as possible but I am almost certain that it will not be next week.   I am looking forward to it.   I only hope that this good weather holds. The exam results are not out yet.   I think the surgeon must have read my paper first, been too disgusted to read any more and given it up as hopeless. I was so sorry to hear you have been overworking yourself.   Poor boy – it is not good for your tachycardia you know! I had to laugh when I read about “the latest dispatch from the Grimethorpe front”.   I had a letter from Vera this morning but she did not say anything.   Perhaps she is saving it all up to tell me when I get home. Have you had the sirens to disturb your slumbers?   We have had them twice within the last week.   The last time they went I was on fire watching d

The Nurses Home      General Hospital Nottingham 24.6.42    8.15 a.m. Darling Stan, I received your letter this morning, so am wasting no time in replying. It is my day off to-day, you see I have a day off for June as well as one for July.   I decided not to go home as I hope to get at the beginning of next month.   I cannot let you know which day I shall be having as I do not know whether or not I shall be moved when we start spring cleaning, which we start on July 4 th . So your mother decided not to take on her new job after all?   It really is amazing to what extent the mere male can use his powers of persuasion when he wishes to! This silly cold of mine seems to be going and coming at intervals.   It is a nuisance. Did you enjoy “playing at soldiers”.   I guess it was quite a challenge for you.   Variety is the spice of life! You asked if I had the “Florence Nightingale complex”.   Well, at present I do not seem to have any particular complex.   I just feel ind

The Nurses Home     General Hospital Nottingham 22.6.42 My Darling Stan, I got quite a surprise when I received your first letter yesterday (Sunday).   I thought it rather funny that one did not arrive Saturday but it must have arrived late post Saturday and I got it Sunday morning.   You said you would be writing again Sunday so thought that I would wait until today and answer them both.   I suppose it will be Wednesday before you receive this. How is this terrific heat suiting you?   It is almost too hot to walk about down here and in this uniform too, though I suppose yours is as bad. I was so pleased to hear that your Mother had managed that job.   I hope that it is not too much for her though.   She will have to travel to work and her housework as well. Knowing your mother though, I think she will be able to manage it alright.   Tell her from me that I am glad she has got it and I hope that she likes the work alright. The picture “Blood and Sand” has been to Nottin

  Home Forces Sunday lunchtime   21.6.42 My Own Darling, I’ve been so busy this morning that there’s only half an hour left for me to write this letter in before the afternoon post goes off.   That’s the reason I am using the typewriter.   I can get things down on paper much quicker when I type and so you will get more news. Well, Angel by the time you get this letter you will have been back at work for nearly a whole fortnight.   That means that in another 14 or so days we shall perhaps be able to arrange to see each other once more.   How I am looking forward to that!   The next couple of weeks or so will not be able to go half fast enough for me. There’s still no news of my photographs materialising from the shop yet, so I am still awaiting them anxiously to see what they are like.   Only Mother has seen them up to now.   I shan’t like them unless they make me look about twenty times better than I really am (but of course that is just self conceit!!!)   What about that enl

Home Forces, Friday 19 th 7 p.m. My own darling, I can’t promise you a long letter to-night; I will write more at the week-end. I thought I would just let you know how pleased I was to find another photograph in your letter this morning.   Of course it had to be passed round the office.   I won’t let you in on all the comments, but they all agreed that I was a most lucky person, having such a grand girl! I had a surprise on Wed'y.   The Officer i/c Records sent a telegram through to the office to say that I was to be transferred to another unit on Monday next.   Next day it was cancelled, however.   I was a wee bit sorry because the unit to which they were sending me was an A.A. division at York, which meant I could have got home in an hour and a half. When I first heard, however, my first thought was “How I wish it was near Nottingham.” It would really be grand if I was near enough to be able to see you on your days and afternoons off, wouldn’t it? However, I am

The Nurses Home     General Hospital Nottingham 11 p.m.    Wed. Darling Stan, I was surprised but very pleased to receive a letter from you last Monday.   I am so sorry that I disappointed you dear by not letting you have a letter for last Saturday but you do understand and now that my exam is over I will let you have them more often – that is until I start with my next exam.   Another thing is that it takes my letters twice as long to reach you as it does for yours to reach me.   Of course, I am glad that it does not take your letters long to reach me.   I look forward to them so much.   However – ‘nuff said about one subject. As regards this exam of mine, I sat it last night.   The paper took one hour.   There were two questions – both compulsory.   The first one was not too bad but the second one was simply terrible.   I am sure that I cannot possibly have passed it. I honestly mean it.   The worst of it is that the surgeon is away on holiday so the papers will not be ma

  Home Forces Tuesday   16.6.42 My Own dear Grace, It was grand to get your letter yesterday afternoon.   I was feeling rather depressed and your writing was just what was required to put me back in good spirits.   The knowledge that you are always thinking of me and missing me is enough to make any man pleased and proud. So you’ve broken your fountain pen, have you?   You seem to have a lot of trouble with pens.   I have just had a walk round the town to see if I could get you a new one.   You know what a job that is, however. Anyway, as soon as I get an opportunity I will buy you a good pen.   I mean to say; no good (written in terms referring to work) nurse should be without a fountain pen which doesn’t keep going wrong!   I shall have to set my “slave” on the job. Well, you expert on the matter of music!   Actually you should have known better than to contradict a journalist, but I suppose that because I think so much about you I will forgive you!   Would you like to s

  Home Forces    Sunday          My own Dear Grace, I was looking forward to a letter from you yesterday afternoon, but as there was none forthcoming I take it that you have been doing lots of work and swotting during the past three or four days.   Perhaps one will arrive tomorrow.   The lads that work in my office say they sincerely hope one does arrive to-morrow, because it puts me in a bad mood when I am disappointed and consequently they suffer!! Have you had that exam you were “looking forward” to?   If so, let’s know how you fared – and just remember my warning. The more I see of the weather this week, I am convinced those nine days of hot weather were just for our benefit.   It rained continuously all the day yesterday.   I went to the pictures in the late afternoon to see “Ladies in Retirement” then on to a small cafe I know for supper – and then back to billets and bed. This cafe I go to is a rather dirty place, but as I go there regularly I am beginning to get well-

  The Nurses Home General Hospital Nottingham   Sat: 13 th   10.40 p.m.   Darling Stan, Another two days and I will have been back in this old place for one week!   It seems longer than five days since I last saw you.   I too, like you, often think of last week – just when I am in the middle of something my thoughts will wander and I wonder what we were doing last week at this time.   One or two of the patients have asked me what is behind my “serene smile”.   Wednesday afternoon I too thought of the previous Wednesday and we two in the garden at Cottingham.* The weather is pretty miserable here at present.   It is dreadfully cold and has rained all day today.   Kit and myself went out this morning and we had to get a new book for our new course of lectures which start on Monday.   You know, the book I tried to get in Leeds.   It just rained and rained so we went into our little cafe and had tea and biscuits.   I must take you to our little cafe when you come down to see me.

  G.H.N. Monday   10.30 p.m.      My Dearest Stan, I really could not wait until to-morrow to write you – I had to write tonight, so I did a little unpacking, had a bath and retired to bed and here I am – writing to you.   I feel so lonely now that I am back – there is such a feeling of emptiness – is it because I am homesick or lovesick?   How I wish you were here with me now but as you are many miles away I can look back upon the memories of our last 9 days together.   The time cannot go too quickly for me now and every minute that passes I shall think – “well – that is one minute nearer to seeing Stan again”. You will probably think I am going cracked writing the above but honestly darling I mean every word. I arrived at the nurses home at 7.40 p.m. and went into supper at 8.15 p.m.   It was an awful concoction of very hard beans – horrid dry potatoes and some sort of tomato flavouring poured over.   The sweet was ice-cream which was quite nice so my supper consisted of ic

  Stan and Grace are now spending nine days together on holiday with their families in Grimethorpe.  This is the longest time that they have spent together so far. The weather is fine and sunny and they spend time going for walks, going to the cinema and one day they visit Leeds.  It was easy to get to Leeds by train from Cudworth station.  They have tea in Schofields, the Leeds department store (pictured) which occupied an assortment of buildings adjacent to the Victoria Arcade. This photograph, showing Schofields as it looked in 1949, is by  kind permission of Leeds Libraries, from their web site  www.leodis.net , which has a huge range of historic photographs of Leeds. * Look out for Grace's next letter on 8 June.