The

The From the home of the co-breakers and the birthplace of modern computing, this is the Bletchley Park podcast.

This is M.C. Fontaine welcoming you to another Bletchley Park podcast extra.

In February this year, Her Royal Highness, the Duchess of Cornwall, paid a visit to Bletchley Park to have afternoon tea with around 60 of our lady veterans. One of those veterans that I had

the pleasure to interview at the time

was former Wren Betty Flavel. Her son Tony, who was with her on the day, has recently been in

touch to tell us the sad news that Betty unfortunately passed away in June this year. He told me

the visit to Bleckley Park was the last time Betty ventured out in the car with him, and although it was

a very tiring day for her, she had a

wonderful time. So as a tribute to Betty, we're again going to share with you the wonderful

interview I had the honour to record with her. Tony and his sister Alex and brother Liam

have also given us a little of their mum's background to share with our listeners. Yorkshire Last Betty was born in 1924 in York and had a very happy childhood.

Dance was a great love of Betty's throughout her life.

She began at the age of four when she took at ballet, tap and cabaret classes.

At the age of 13, she joined the Wyn Stanley Babes Dance Troop

and danced on many a stage in theatres across the country,

from Blackpool to Shepherds Bush, London.

In 1939, with the Second World War looming,

Betty was collecting for the Red Cross and was a volunteer at the NAFI HQ. Turning 16, in the spring of 1940, Betty left school

and went to work in the York offices of British Rail until 1943 when she joined the Wrens.

I'll let Betty take up the story from there.

I was a bomb operator at Eastcoat on Sea Watch.

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