1928
Archie Grainger was one of the young mechanics in loom shed one where Annie worked. It was his job to maintain the machines and to make sure they continued to run smoothly. He was expected to sort out problems as they arose or, better still, to prevent them from happening in the first place. He would run from one machine to another, spanner in hand, tightening nuts, oiling creaky joints, sometimes risking his life when he had to squeeze his large frame into the small space underneath or between the looms to untangle the fine yarn or free the cogs from cotton dust.
He was a pleasant sort of fellow, lips always pursed, which Annie assumed meant he was forever whistling, even though no one could hear him above the din in the shed. Unlike many of his grumpy older colleagues he was big and brawny and always willing to lend a hand if any of the women were having trouble lifting a bale of yarn or handling a bolt of cloth. He often went about shirtless and his glistening body gave off a glow that Annie, she was shocked to discover, found attractive. When she had first noticed him he was fixing some of the machines and she had feigned disinterest when he tried to engage her in a pantomimed conversation. But he seemed so determined to attract her attention that soon she found herself unable to resist responding to his antics, and even laughing at them. There was no denying he was a big, handsome young man, and when the Bradshaw sisters began to tease her about his obvious interest they did it from a distance, as though they were afraid to tangle with him at close quarters. They were not afraid, however, to spread wicked lies about him and Annie, though Annie was determined not to let their vicious nastiness get her down.
She still walked home with Nancy and Lilian each night and one evening after work, as she was waiting for them to appear, Archie came out before them and came over to where she was standing.
‘Annie Beaumont,’ he said, ‘are you three so permanently attached there’s no room for anyone else to join your little clique?’
‘They say there’s safety in numbers,’ Annie teased, but there was a flirtatious glint in her eye as she met his gaze. ‘Why don’t you join us? That might make it even safer.’
‘Because it’s you and you alone that I’d like to walk home with. Nice as I’m sure your friends are,’ he added quickly.
Annie blushed. No man had ever approached her like this, not since the days when her dancing card was filled for the evening at the formal balls held by her parents and their friends. Now, she was no longer the same confident young woman and she wasn’t sure what Archie saw in her. She knew she didn’t have the same good looks she’d once had, even though there were no mirrors in the house these days. But she knew, without looking, that her eyes must be as red-rimmed as those of the girls she worked with for they felt sore and tender. She didn’t know quite what to say. Fortunately, Archie was never at a loss for words.
‘I tell you what,’ he said, ‘I’ll offer you a compromise.’
Annie raised her brows. ‘Oh?’
‘If I leave you alone to walk home with your friends tonight, then you must promise to come for a walk with me later on this evening.’
‘Oh,’ Annie said again, only this time more coyly. ‘Where would we go?’
‘Why don’t you tell me where you live and I’ll come by and pick you up at eight? I’ll think of somewhere for us to go by then.’
Annie suddenly felt all of a flutter, even if he was only a lowly mill worker. But there could be no harm in going for a walk … She told him where she lived and wondered what her parents would make of him. She was trying to explain how he should find the house when Nancy and Lilian arrived.
‘Never mind,’ Archie said, ‘I’ll find it. Good evening, ladies,’ he said as the girls approached. He made a gesture of doffing his cap although he wasn’t actually wearing one. ‘Pardon me if I leave you to your own devices. I shall see you anon,’ he said, looking straight at Annie, and then he strode off in the opposite direction to where the girls were headed.
‘Can’t even find a man to take you home. What a shame.’ It was the eldest of the Bradshaw sisters shouting as she passed by. ‘If you let him into your knickers he might be persuaded.’ The three bullies cackled together. Annie turned away and ignored them as she and her friends set off in the direction of home, arm in arm in solidarity as they always were.
‘You don’t think I intend being a mechanic in a rotten mill all my life do you, fixing bloomin’ looms day after day?’ Archie shook his head until his long fair curls had rearranged themselves, then he drew in his breath. ‘I think that would just about kill me off.’
‘I must confess I hadn’t thought much about it. It’s never really crossed my mind. I just accepted that you were a mechanic and that’s what you do. I suppose most of the men seem to be grateful enough to have a job of any kind. I’m not sure they question what they’re doing.’
‘You’re right there. And it’s true, times are hard and I am grateful to have a job right now. But it doesn’t mean I don’t intend to better myself soon as I can.’
‘I must admit I feel very much the same way, but then it doesn’t take much skill to operate a loom whereas you seem to be really good at your job. You’re very skilled. You’ve certainly kept my decrepit old machine going longer than it deserves. Maybe it would have been put out on the scrap heap long ago were it not for you.’
Archie did a little dance in front of her and took a deep bow. ‘Thank you kindly for your praise, ma’am. You’ve no idea how much that means to me.’
Annie giggled, something she had not done for a long time. ‘Now you’re making fun of me.’
‘Not at all. The thanks were sincerely meant. I can assure you, any teasing is in far better humour than what those wretched girls at the mill mete out. They’re forever going on at you.’
‘You’ve noticed?’ Annie was surprised.
‘I can’t help but see it and hear all their malicious gossip, I’m afraid. They never miss a trick. I’ve seriously thought about putting them over my knee and giving them a good spanking. I tell you, I wouldn’t be sorry if one of them disappeared under a loom.’
Annie tried to look shocked, but she echoed the sentiment, even if she couldn’t bring herself to express her feelings in words. ‘I suppose I’ve learned to live with it. It’s as if they are the cross I have to bear at the mill. But tell me, Archie, what else would you like to have done if you had your time over?’
Now Archie sounded shocked. ‘You make it sound like that’s it, like I’m stuck here forever – when let me tell you I’m not. I’m not waiting for my time to come around again. I intend to do something about it at the first time of asking. I’m not going to wait for hell to freeze over first, if you’ll pardon the expression, but I’m sure you know what I mean. I’ll be gone from here as soon as I can get together enough money to see me through for a short while. I’m going to do something about changing my life just as soon as I possibly can. I shall be off and out of here at the first opportunity. I’m going to be a pilot,’ he said proudly. He folded his arms across his chest and planted his feet solidly on the ground as he stood in front of her. ‘I intend to go wherever you have to go to learn to fly an aeroplane, so I want to get myself into the best possible shape first.’ He flexed the muscles in his arms to demonstrate his strength and they did indeed bulge through his shirt. ‘That’s what I intend to do and I can tell you it won’t be long now,’ he said. He was staring up at the sky and beaming. Annie felt that he was no longer aware of her presence as he spread his arms and spun round slowly enjoying all he could see. She couldn’t bring herself to tell him that the RAF would never be interested in a working-class boy like him. They believed that only public schoolboys were the right material for such work. ‘I want to be up there in the sky.’ His voice was full of wonder. ‘Imagine being so free that you can just flit from trouble to a place where you’re so far away from all this mess down here, that all you can see are birds. Imagine being in a place where the air’s so clear there can never be any danger of filling your lungs with so much dust and fibres that you can’t breathe. And if you should happen to bump into a cloud you can take off again and fly in the opposite direction where the air’s just as clear and you’re not afraid to take a deep breath.’
He sounded so passionate that, when he paused for a moment, Annie burst into spontaneous applause. She couldn’t bring herself to spoil his dream. ‘Bravo,’ she said, ‘that was a wonderful speech. You make me want to be up there with you.’
Archie, however, did come down to earth very quickly when she said that and looked a little embarrassed. But Annie had seen how his face had lit up as he spoke, his green eyes shining as if he had already been transported hundreds of miles away. He looked at her shyly and began to walk on.
‘How about you?’ he said. ‘Do you reckon you’re stuck here till the end of your working life?’
‘Goodness me, no,’ Annie answered immediately, without even thinking. ‘I’ll never allow that to happen.’ Then she hesitated. She didn’t want to tell him too much about her past. At least, not now. There would be time enough for that later – if there was ever to be a later. ‘I intend to get out of here at the first available opportunity, though I am not quite sure yet how I’m going to do it.’
‘Marry some rich bloke,’ he joked.
‘Maybe that too.’ She felt comfortable enough with him to be able to join in the jest. But she knew she was not going to rely solely on marriage to change her situation. ‘There’s something I’d like to do first. Something I’ve dreamed of doing ever since I was a little girl.’ She wondered if she should tell him but she was surprised how easy he was to talk to and decided to take the plunge. ‘I used to live on the other side of Clitheroe where I belonged to the amateur dramatic and operatic society,’ she said, though she didn’t tell him she’d had only one starring role. ‘The thing is, I would love to go on the stage or be a film star – I don’t mind which. I’ve always longed to be an actress of some kind. There now, I’ve never told that to anyone before.’
She let out her breath and looked at his face, dreading that it might be filled with amusement. But he had a serious look as he turned to her and said, ‘Your secret’s safe with me.’
It was almost dark when they arrived back on her front doorstep and, as Annie watched him go, she realized her feelings were in deep turmoil and she was unsure what to do. She really liked Archie. He was good-looking, he was exciting and she was impressed by his ambitions. But would he ever amount to anything? Would he really be accepted by the RAF, or was he just flying a kite full of dreams? She must proceed with caution. It would not be wise to form a deep attachment to someone who might remain a mere mill worker all his life. After all she had been through, she could never allow herself to get involved with someone who might prove to be totally unsuitable.