The First Aid Nursing Yeomanry (FANY) was one of the most distinctive women’s organisations of the Second World War. While closely linked to the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) and widely respected for its expertise in transport and driving, FANY also operated as a separate and highly trusted body. Its members were frequently deployed in roles that demanded discretion, adaptability, and resilience, including work connected to intelligence, clandestine operations, and the Special Operations Executive (SOE).

Thanks to funding from The Gerry Holdsworth Special Forces Charity, Legasee has been able to bring to light eight previously unseen filmed interviews with former FANY members. The interviews, recorded by Martyn Cox, provide first-hand testimony of FANY activity as the women reflect on their wartime service, the skills they were trained to master, and the responsibilities they carried.

Together with the veteran interviews already held by Legasee, they reveal the breadth of FANY’s contribution and challenge narrower assumptions about women’s service during the war.

By placing the voices of FANY veterans at its centre, the project seeks to recognise their service on its own terms and to situate their experiences within the wider story of Britain’s wartime effort – a story in which secrecy, skill, and quiet professionalism were often just as important as action on the front line.