Therese Bradley (always known as Dee) was born October 26th 1926 at Maiden Villa, 67 Ipswich Road (Martlesham Road), Woodbridge, Suffolk to Robert and Alfreda Donaldson. She had two older brothers – Robert, who in the 1960s and 1970s was living in Hayes with his second wife Vera and 8 children. And Vincent John Mervyn, born 6thJune 1922, at Bridge Farm, Martlesham, always known as Mervyn, In the war he was in the RAF, a sergeant, flight engineer on Lancasters, which involved being second pilot. He and his crew died on a bombing run to Essen January 9th 1943, and are buried in Amersfoort (Oud Leusden) General Cemetery.
Robert and Alfreda married 19th February 1917 in Reading at St. James Roman Catholic Church. He was 33, she was 25. He was a Sergeant, ground crew in the Royal Flying Corps. By 1922 he was a Warrant Officer, 1st Class. Apparently he devised a new method of loading bombs on planes.
In 1929, the family went to the RAF base at Heliopolis in Egypt, a journey that took 6 weeks. They had a marvelous time there – there are a number of photos of their happy lifestyle. Dee’s father had a brother James who Dee never met. His mother was born Elizabeth Diaz. Dee only met her once, in Belfast, when she was in her 60s and blind. This was after the return from Egypt at age 7, and was unnerving as her blind grandmother felt her face. Her grandfather John Donaldson was from Glasgow, but had a pub in Belfast – he had died by the time of the marriage in 1917. Elizabeth had a sister, Anna, who was mother to an ‘Uncle Bob’. Anna married a Woolahan, which got changed to Woolingham. On return from Egypt, the family were at RAF Digby Lincolnshire for 6 months. Then the they went to RAF quarters at Felixstowe in Suffolk, where there were only seaplanes.
Mum used to love swimming and was taught to dive by her beloved brother Mervyn. She cycled the area freely with her friends, and enjoyed life. She was 12 when war broke out in Sept 1939. In May 1940 the family moved to a rented maisonette at 87 Shaftesbury Avenue, Harrow, near her dad's cousin. Dee’s dad was born 28th October 1883. He died 31st Oct 1950 at the age of 67. He was at one time the most senior warrant officer in the RAF. He couldn’t afford to become a commissioned officer, because of the mess bills. He was ground crew, in a career which stretched right back to 1914 and the early days of the Royal Flying Corps. When war broke out he was posted to Glamorgan and rented there. Her dad had fears about an East coast invasion and German bombing of Felixstowe. As it happened the London blitz started 6 weeks later and no bombs fell on Felixstowe. At least one bomb did fall on Shaftesbury Ave, with fatalities, and No. 87's windows and doors were blown out, while Felixstowe attracted no attention.
Dee went to St. Dominic's School on Harrow on the Hill, then in Sept 1942 to Commercial College in Harrow for a year to learn shorthand typing, book-keeping and office management. In Sept 1943 she began work, age 16, for Sir Robert McAlpine, working for Mrs. Richmond in the insurance department. There were lots of deaths on building sites back then. A few years later Mrs. Richmond's husband, an enthusiastic amateur photographer, took some special glamorous photos of mum which we treasure. All these years Dee pursued her hobby of acrobatics and was sometimes part of performances to boost morale at places like anti-aircraft gun sites.
In August 1944 Dee volunteered for the Land Army,and started in September. She worked at the Glasgow stud farm at Crews Hill to the North of London and had a wonderful time, which she often spoke of, doing hard manual labour, driving tractors and working with horses. She used to take mushrooms, eggs etc home on her weekend visits and they were very well received.
In Sept 1947, Dee went North to Holmesfield in Derbyshire to work for Major Wilson (of Wilson’s snuff) who stabled the hunt horses. However, in Feb 1948 her mother Alfreda died. Alfreda’s maiden name was Oates. She had a middle name sometimes written Anne, sometimes Annie. She was born 6/11/1890 in Reading and wasn’t Roman Catholic till she married. She had an English father, Henry Oates, and a mum with some German in her. Address – 60 Southampton Street, Reading. Alfreda had an older sister, Maud, who had 6 childen. Alfreda didn’t look like Maud and it was said that mum had a boy friend. Dad was a corporation watchman, working nights. Alfreda died in Charing Cross Hospital 3rdFeb 1948 from heart failure, at 57. Her death meant that Dee returned from where she had been working looking after Major Wilson's horses. The men (father and brother) needed someone to look after them! Dee found this very difficult as she had never budgeted, cooked or looked after a household. It didn't go well.
Near the end of 1948, Dee re-applied to the Land Army and went to a billet at Henfield, Sussex, cycling to a market garden in Shoreham to work. She had been very short of money and suddenly had £3 spends! Went home at weekends. She stuck it till Christmas 1948 and then told the Land Army she wanted a place nearer home. She was placed at Princes Risborough after Christmas. Sometime around now she had a trip to Jersey with her brother Bob when she smuggled nylons back. She met Brad (David Angelo Bradley) at a Christmas social in Dec 1948, when he spilt beer on her new coat in the pub. She has vivid memories of his 21st birthday party in January 1949 when they had only known each other a few weeks and was eyed up by all the Italian relatives. She performed acrobatics to their amazement.
The new placement (weekdays only) was the Robley Brown (?) School for Young Ladies, where they had to grow their own vegetables, for which they were allowed two Land Army girls. She lived in a cottage with Flo, and remembered rations! She left the Land Army and came home in March 1949 and still had no money. Bob, her brother, gave her the occasional ten bob note. So she took a part-time job as a shorthand typist at Varley Pump & Engineering Park Royal/Acton. There were no part-time jobs in Harrow. The weekly pay was £1.50! She was dating Brad, playing badminton, and singing in the church choir. Brad had done his national service by now (1946-8 in the RAF paymasters office in Germany), and was working in Martins Bank.
In the winter of 1949/50 Kenton Light Opera started, and with it Brad and Dee's lifelong connection with opera. The first show was Pirates of Penzance. When her dad died in Oct 1950, Dee got a full time job at the London Wholesale Meat Suppliers Association at Smithfield Market. She used to travel up to town with Brad but the job was horrible and she left before they got married. The marriage was on 2ndJune 1951, at Our Lady and St. Thomas of Canterbury, Harrow on the Hill (living at 87 Shaftesbury Ave). She then went to work for Bastion and Allen by Wealdstone bridge. She was secretary to the Company Secretary. She left in June 1952, when 7 months pregnant, and was then a housewife and mum. David was born on 22nd August 1952, followed by Bernadette on 19th Dec 1953 and Monica on 24thAugust 1956.
The opportunity arose to buy No. 87 in 1954. They sold it quickly for a £700 profit, moving to 28 Fisher Road, which cost £2,200. This left money over to buy carpets! Her first job on re-starting work was in 1961 – 2 weeks typing envelopes at a local firm for £2 a week. Fisher Road had no telephone at first and only a party line later. A twin tub washing machine was delivered one afternoon a week for 2/6 (half a crown).
In about 1963 Dee went to work for Jack Mann who was the agent for Galon Fabric, beside Wealdstone station. The family moved to 300 Torbay Road Rayners Lane, at the same time as Galon moved to just by Rayners lane station.
In 1965 she went to work for Alec and Julianne Kirkbride on Harrow-on-the-Hill. They were Consultant Industrial Designers, specialising in caravans. Dee was there for 5 years. She was earning £14.50 per week part-time and it increased! It meant the family could go on holiday and buy a first car – a second hand Wolseley 1500. Dee passed her driving test while at Torbay Road.
In 1966, there was an exhausting house search, which took up her mornings (she worked afternoons), They settled on 93 Whitmore Road which cost £7,100. It was a more suitable house now that Brad had been promoted from Assistant Manager Wigmore Street to open a brand new branch of Martins Bank in Gloucester Rd, London. For the interview he had had to go to Martins bank head office Water Street, Liverpool. He joined Round Table and thoroughly enjoyed the social life. Later Martins were take over by Barclays and he managed Barclays branches at Shepherds Bush and High Street Kensington. He joined Rotary and thoroughly enjoyed that too, becoming a Paul Harris fellow. The opera continued throughout, with Brad’s career pinnacling in masterly performances as Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof for 8 different companies. Brad and Dee's social life centred around the opera world and Rotary, whose activities included charitable work. They continued as lifelong church attending Catholics.