June 11th 2020
After watching the video of Richard Croasdale talking about growing up during the war in Blackburn, children from Blackburn Children’s University plus a few other children from the local area, wanted to ask him a few questions. We arranged for Stephen Irwin, Education Officer at Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery, to put their questions to Richard in a phone interview and we have a wonderful recording of their conversation to share with you.
We suggest that you listen to the recording in a quiet room with no distractions to give you the idea of what it was like listening to a wireless broadcast.
Richard was asked the following questions during the interview:
- How old were you at the start of the war?
- Were you frightened?
- Did you think you were going to die?
- Where were your parents?
- What games did you play?
- What did you eat on VE day?
- How did you celebrate VE Day?
- How did you feel when the lights came back on in Blackburn?
- What happened to your gas masks at the end of the war? Did everyone have to hand them in or could you keep them?
- Do you feel as though rationing helped prepare you for budgeting in later life?
- Did you feel that during the war everyone became closer in the community?
- Did adults also have to carry gas masks with them all the time?
- What music did you listen to during the war?
- What was it like reuniting with family members who had been away during the war?
- What would you say to children today who are living in war zones?
“To see all the trams again, all lit up at night, oh what a fantastic sight that was”.
– Richard Croasdale, June 2020