Ellen thought that when she went to the corner shop on the corner of Rudyerd Street for her mother that the shopping she got was free!
Ellen thought that when she went to the corner shop on the corner of Rudyerd Street for her mother that the shopping she got was free! She didn’t know that her mother went, later on, to pay for the goods. She also remembers her mam used to go to the penny bazaar a lot.
On a Saturday night, Ellen and her friends liked nothing better than parading up and down Saville Street looking in the shop windows, which were all lit up and dressed. They used to pick out the clothes and other items they liked the best.
At the age of fourteen, Ellen started work in the Tyne Brand factory. She worked 8.00 – 12.00 and then 1.00 – 5.00 and the wage was 9/6, of which 6d was deducted for the smock she had to wear when she was there. She would hand over her pay packet and her mother would give her 1/6 back as pocket money for the week.
Ellen left Tyne Brand to join the Royal Air Force and ended as a cook in the officers’ mess (bomber command) attached to the Canadian Air Force. She did want to be a driver, but her legs were too short!