What was Blickling Halls part in WWII?

Volunteer Mark Stocking at the RAF museum, Blickling Hall, reading about someone who flew from RAF Oulton.

04 June 2007 09:17

It is famous for its picturesque gardens and for claims that it is home to the headless ghost of Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII's second wife.

But Norfolk's Blickling Hall also contains a fascinating museum focusing on the part that it, and the county, played in the second world war.

And its bosses are now trying to highlight the hall's RAF museum, to coincide with the 63rd anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy, which is on Wednesday.

The hall was one of a number of country houses requisitioned by the government and it became the station headquarters for military personnel from RAF Oulton, which opened as a grass airfield in 1940 and was used for the first few years of its life by light bombers.

British and American airmen were housed there until 1944 when the RAF moved back to Oulton upon it enjoying a refit.

Years later, volunteers man the museum during house open days, allowing people to find out more about war at the hall and nearby RAF Oulton.

Beryl Griffiths, 77, from Briston, one of the volunteers, said: “It's fascinating working here because we get a lot of people who served here in the war coming back, and also people who remember what it was like.

“For some of the war, Blickling was home to the 214 and 223 RAF squadrons and the American 803rd. Although the airmen lived in the rooms, Lord Lothian, the hall's owner, never allowed anyone to use the front door, so everyone had to enter round the back.

“Life for the airmen was built around them going off on their raids, and then hopefully returning - 306 people were lost from RAF Oulton.

“The museum has some first- class photos of the airfield and one shows airmen using dinghies from out of the aircraft to fish on the lake.”

The museum also contains pictures of the filming of The Wicked Lady, which starred Margaret Lockwood and Patricia Roc and was filmed at the hall near the end of the war.

The RAF museum is run by National Trust volunteers and could not open to the public without their help. The museum is open between 1pm and 4.30pm on house open days.

Blickling Hall is also recruiting room guides to provide a warm welcome to visitors. If you are interested in finding out more, go along to the property tomorrow for a coffee and an informal chat. The Volunteer Recruitment Day will be held in the South Restaurant from 10.30am to 12.30pm.

For more information about the hall, call 01263 738065 or log on to the website at www.nationaltrust. org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace/w-blicklinghallgarden andpark.htm

Have you got a story about Blickling Hall during the war? Call reporter David Bale on 01603 772427 or e-mail david.bale2@archant.co.uk

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