On Thursday (June 21), WaterstonesMK is holding an evening with Julie Summers, social historian and best-selling author of 'Jambusters' (the book that led to the TV drama series 'Home Fires' about the W.I. in the Second World War), as we discuss her brand new book.
'Our Uninvited Guests' perfectly captures the spirit of upheaval at the beginning of the Second World War when thousands of houses were requisitioned by the government to provide accommodation for the armed forces, secret services and government offices as well as vulnerable children, the sick and the elderly, all of whom needed to be housed safely beyond the reach of Hitler's Luftwaffe.
Julie Summers will give a fascinating behind-the-scenes glimpse of life with uninvited guests in some of Britain's greatest country houses: Blenheim Palace was colonised by schoolboys who slept in the Long Library; Polish special agents trained in the grounds of Audley End House. Brocket Hall, former home of Queen Victoria's favourite Lord Melbourne, was used as a maternity home for women from the East End of London, and the Rothschilds' magnificent French chateau-inspired Waddesdon Manor housed a hundred children under five...
The event is free and runs between 6pm and 8pm.
If you are a member of the B.F.W.I., please contact your W.I. for details of how to get a free tea or coffee plus 10% off any purchases on the night!
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