22nd January 1943

Friday

Cloudy, but the clouds thin, with the sun rising behind them.  Got in at a quarter to 9 for once.  Clouds high all day until late in the afternoon, when they came lower and looked like rain.

Slipped out at 4 o’clock and went with Poulter to have tea with Diana Davis [Stage Manager for Colchester Repertory Company] in Balkerne Gardens.  What a lovely place this is, but how spoilt by the wretched tin garage.  Poulter seemed to be very bright and cheerful and his voice is certainly better today than for some time.

As I cycled up Harwich Road near the Royal Oak on my way out tonight, about half past 5, I heard a plane going east, and at once the sirens sounded.  How glad I was to be going out of the town and not coming in.  All-clear sounded after I got through Ardleigh.  As I passed the church there in the gathering dusk, I saw a little bent old woman opening the churchyard gate.  I wonder why she was going in there in the dark.

Received a memorandum from Writtle this morning praising my “news items” which had been sent for the monthly news-sheets.  I was very pleased, as the officer in charge was quite unaware that I was the author of them.

Heavy rain again at 8 o’clock tonight.  The land is getting very sodden.  At Wigborough they can do nothing now.