About the contributor

My name is Frank Wells, I was born in Fulham, London S.W.6. My
schools were Kingwood Road, Munster Road & Fulham Central.
I was evacuated to Haslemere, Surrey just prior to hostilities, where I was first billeted with the Grigg family, the master of the household being the manager of the Westminster Bank in the High Street, where we lived over the shop, so to speak. It was a very comfortable home over three floors.The family took on four 'waifs', and she had two children of her own Anne aged about 12-13 and Richard aged 17 who was in OCTU at a Guildford college, who was soon to enlist and I understand rose rapidly in the officer ranks.
It soon got too much for Mrs Grigg, although she had a maid come cook etc. She kept two of us, the other being a John Scott. (I believe that was his name). She soon decided she wanted only one evacuee and asked me to stay; I suppose you could say I foolishly declined as I was getting used to this middle class life style, horse riding with Richard and Anne etc.
My next family were The Bicknells who lived in a council house. Mrs Bicknell's husband was in a mental hospital near Woking and she was bringing up her three children alone. Donald at 18 was the eldest and suffered with epilepsy, and desperately wanted to join his contemporaries in the armed forces. Esme (Bunty) was a year or so younger and John was 12-13.
One of my earliest recollections with the family was hearing of the loss of the battleship Royal Oak, she was sunk by a U-Boat and close neighbour had been a crew member. He was a survivor, 833 men perished.