TWO LIVES

Lorraine was born on 2nd December 1917 in Fulham, London. She was actually christened Ruby Lorraine but she absolutely hated the name Ruby and never used it. Eventually she had it changed by deed poll. Her mother Annette Violet Muriel Brooksbank was from an illustrious family which includes Thomas Lamplugh, Archbishop of York (1615-91),  her great grandfather Stephen Poyntz Denning, artist and curator of Dulwich Picture Gallery and also Lord Tom Denning, Master of the Rolls.   Her father, Stephen Poyntz Brooksbank was born in 1856, the first son of the Reverend Walter Brooksbank and lived on the Lamplugh estate in Cumberland. He was educated at Bradfield College in Berkshire and studied engineering at Durham University although the photograph above shows him at Oxford. He became a well respected civil engineer and wrote interesting poetry, including one about a jackdaw which I will include in the notes.  He died in 1931 and is buried in Hartley Wintney in Hampshire with his wife Hannah.  Another branch of the Brooksbank family had a country estates in  Healaugh near Tadcaster through which we are related to Jack Brooksbank, husband of Princess Eugenie. My grandmother, Annette, married William Tydeman who was from a lowly background but he was devoted to her. He was trained as a proof reader but work was hard to find during the Depression and his brother-in-law Ernie who was working as a secretary at a gentleman's club found him a job there as a steward.  After the economy picked up again he worked as a clerk in the Ministry of Labour in Chiswick until he retired.    

The Tydeman family. Lorraine is bottom row, middle

Lorraine and her friend Elsie

Lorraine aged 13

Lorraine, George and Granny Tydeman

The family lived in Nowell Road, Barnes. Today it would be quite a good address as it's not far from the Thames but at that time Barnes was nothing special. Mum said that she went to school in a little building by the pond which is now a public toilet. (I have checked it out, there's a very nice community centre there now and the toilet has been incorporated into the adjoining house). Grandpa Tydeman was quite a shy man but totally devoted to his wife and I think it would be fair to say it was reciprocated as she bore him six children -- Percy, Vernon, Bert, Ena, Lorraine and George.  After the war the three older brothers went their separate ways and Mum hardly ever saw them but she was very close to Ena and George.  Granny and Grandpa moved to East Sheen.

Lorraine aged 16

Lorraine and her friend Alan Edwards

Lorraine at the tennis club

Life in West London offered plenty of opportunities even though she was not from a well-to-do family. She was a champion hurdler and was very proud of the fact that she hurdled for her county. In fact, she was a natural sportswoman, and loved swimming, tennis and horse-riding. Her favourite riding companion was Alan Edwards, brother of the comedian Jimmy.  And perhaps the biggest passion of them all was ballet. Not only doing it but also watching it and she used to go to Covent Garden night after night to watch all the greats. She was so keen to go that she used to walk there! After the performance she waited outside the stage door to get the dancers' autographs before walking home again.