We were saddened to learn this week of the passing of Old Queenswoodian Marjorie Inkster at the beginning of June.  Marjorie and her sister Brenda attended Queenswood in the 1930's and went on to play hugely significant roles in the Second World War.

At the beginning of their service, both Brenda and Marjorie joined the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry (FANY), driving  ambulances and staff cars. Marjorie was just 19 when she joined in 1940. Brenda, a highly talented linguist was soon absorbed into Intelligence and spent time working at Bletchley Park. Marjorie went on to train as a radar mechanic before engaging in highly secretive radar work, transporting a ten tonne mobile radar around the country under armed guard. Her security clearance was high enough that on her weekends off she could stay with Brenda at Bletchley Park.

To listen to Marjorie talking about her time at Queenswood amid the rise of Nazism in Europe, you can access an Imperial War Museum recording below. In 2005, Marjorie published her book Bow and Arrow War: From FANY to Radar in World War II, in which she describes her fascinating contribution to the war effort; an inspiring and compelling read.

Imperial War Museum - Marjorie Inkster