When WW2 started Elvira Burbeck was suddenly out of work and looking for something new to do, so she joined the Ministry of Labour. A friend recommended she join the FANYs (First Aid Nursing Yeomanry). However, as Alvira was in a protected job, she was rejected. She tried again, this time with help from a colleague, and was accepted, and within a month she was sent to Algiers, Algeria. When she arrived in Oran, Algeria, the danger set in, as she was told they would have to go by train to Algiers to avoid any U-boats in the area. Her group decided to fly, which was very exciting for Elvira, as it was her first time in a Mitchell Bomber aircraft. When she arrived in Massingham, Algeria, she worked for an Intelligence officer, processing intelligence coming in from France. Elvria’s role in Massingham involved getting agents ready to be sent into France. She made sure the agents were in the right clothes, and made sure the agents knew how to act when they landed. Elvira was posted there for 10 months. After this, she had several postings in: Rome, Algiers, Italy, Canada, and Sri Lanka. Whilst in Italy, she was involved in finding road and rail targets for agents to bomb. After the war she was offered a job with the Foreign Office in Rome, but she turned it down, hoping to be posted to Bangkok instead. After thinking about it, she accepted the post and the Italians get back on their feet. Overall, she remembers the niceness of everybody, and the joy of working with such nice people during a very serious time. She recalls never feeling like she was at a disadvantage, everyone was valid and everyone’s contribution mattered. Elvira remembers a funny story about a poisonous snake ending up in a lavatory whilst based at Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and the chaos that followed.

Margaret Pawley was born in Germany to British parents, she moved back to England in her childhood. During the war her father recommended she sign up for the SEO (Secret Operations Executive), thinking her ability to speak German would make her a great asset. She interviewed at Baker street and was accepted, she completed 8 days of training at the FANY cipher school before being sent to Cairo. She worked in the signals office for a while before being sent to Italy. She was stationed there for a couple of months, before someone noticed she could speak German, because of this, she was transferred to an intelligence branch where she began to listen and decode German transmissions so that she could track their movements. Margaret reflects on the highs and lows of her wartime experience. Deadly illnesses were very common, and she recalls many of her comrades died to sickness. She herself suffered ringworm and jaundice due to the lack of fresh food. However, she also cherishes the friendships she made and the support among her peers. She continued her duties until the war's end, she was sent to Scotland to assist the injured before being demobbed in December. She recalls how the FANYs began and the different roles these women had throughout the years. She talks about how it developed into the SOE and how the FANYs were used as a cover for its female operatives. The role of the FANYs was recognised by Major-General Sir Colin McVean Gubbins, acknowledging he couldn’t have run the SOE without the women of FANY.

A thought provoking and well attended visit by pupils from the school.