It is the early hours of Monday the 24th of May 1940. The hallway is full of suitcases with tie tags on each. One is for the case, one is to tie on each child - hopefully to stop the child from getting lost. My mum had bathed us the night before our dreaded evacuation day. The four brothers and my mum were due to be evacuated somewhere in the Reading area. Breakfast over it was time to congregate outside in the street where all the other children and some of the mums were awaiting in the charabancs to take all of us to Kings Cross railway station. Children and the mums that were accompanying their children were finally seated and ready for the journey.

The charabancs came to a standstill all in line outside the railway station. The officials supervising this evacuation started to lead all the children from the first charabancs into the station. When all of the evacuees were safely congregated in the station they were filed onto the platform where the steam train was making lots of noise and creating clouds of steam. The train was waiting for all of the boys and girls and some of the mums to find a seat. There was some pushing and shoving to get a window seat, but after a short time they were all seated. The train gave a sudden shuddering motion and a loud noise as the powerful steam started to move the train out of the station.

The last of the London suburbs slipped past the train windows. Green fields now replaced the dirty old buildings and bombsites of London. Cries and shrieks came from the children as they saw their first cows and sheep in green fields. The hedges were stopping them getting out of the fields. Then other fields had green stalks coming out of the ground. This was the first time that any of the children had seen green fields or any animals in their lives. The steam train was travelling very fast towards its destination. The mums seemed to be more apprehensive about the future than any of the children. The train was losing speed now. Reading was not too far away now. Children and mums started to get restless with fear of the unknown, the time scale of the evacuation and what type of people and accommodation they had to look forward to. The train slowed down to a crawl as it entered Reading station. When the whole length of the train was in the station the train gave its normal whoosh of steam and stopped. Doors began to open, some of them banging against the side of the train.

Once all of the train's occupants were out of the train they were met by ladies in green uniforms who led them all to a part of the station that was large, open and quiet. People arrived and started to choose the evacuees they wanted to stay at their homes. One of the women dressed in that green uniform walked up to me and gripped my ear with her thumb and finger, pulling it quite hard. She asked when was the last time this boy had a bath. My mother put her firmly in her place. The woman retired and we did not see her again. A lovely elderly couple approached us and arrangements were made for me, my mother and my younger brother to stay on their farm. My other two brothers had to go to a house in the next village. We saw each other on a daily basis.

All of us boys enjoyed our time in the country and we helped on the farm when we could.