Interview with Margaret Nightingale by Vicky Macdonald

Description

Short interview conducted by Vicky MaCdonald during the ‘Longest Yarn’ with visitors that shared personal memories and family stories in reaction to the exhibition. The Longest Yarn exhibition was a month-long tribute to the War Effort behind the D-Day Landings of 1944 - displaying a 3D tapestry depicting D-Day in 80 panels – was held at the Holy Trinity Church, Llandudno (October 2–27, 2024).

Margaret Nightingale, born in 1937, shares childhood memories from WWII. Her father, unable to join the RAF due to his job in munitions, served in the auxiliary fire service. She recalls the fear of air raids, with families gathering in concrete shelters and the comfort of community amid bombings. Margaret remembers gas masks, the scarcity of sweets, and unfamiliarity with fruits like bananas. She shares a childhood rhyme from school, humorously warning to “run away if you see a man with a square head,” reflecting wartime attitudes. Her mother worked during the war, but specific details are unclear.