This is Olive Masterson’s tale of growing up in the Richmond Road area of Brighton between the Wars. Surrounded by her close-knit family and friends, she was the youngest child of four, and lived a varied and interesting life. In her narrative, she voices the hopes and fears that she experienced in making the often difficult transition from childhood to adulthood. Olive had many occupations; from working in a uniform factory to being a machinist in a gown shop near Preston Circus.

She recounts the trials and tribulations of an ordinary hardworking Brightonian woman, who dealt stoically with the many problems she faced in her life, including diphtheria in the family and the ill-health of her father, who was the principal wage-earner.

Editorial team: Sadie Abbiss, Margaret Bearfield, June Beasley, Kate Cornwall-Jones, Hazel Croft, Marion Devoy, Molly Erkmen, Marjorie Gardiner, Jan Hanley, Ursula Howard, Maureen Ivermee, Olive Masterson