Following the recent VE Day celebrations, we recently received a remarkable letter from the family of one of a nurse who worked at Alder Hey during the Second World War. The letter was written on 10th May 1945 by Marjorie Joan Cleare (known as Joan), a nurse at Alder Hey, to her father in Wales. It was sent to us by her son, Tim, and it offers a poignant glimpse into how staff and patients at Alder Hey celebrated VE Day.
She described the ward sister waiting for her after her shift with “a whole armful” of flags to help decorate. Together, they ironed and hung them on the walls. Joan noted that the rest of the wards were also decorated “beautifully.”
“The kids were all terribly excited & couldn’t be controlled at all,” she wrote.
The letter, written before the creation of the NHS in 1948, captures not only the spirit of a nation but also the hopes and dreams of a young woman looking toward the future.
Her son, Tim, said: “She loved her time caring for the children at Alder Hey and spoke of them fondly—especially one boy named Henry, who taught her Liverpool (Scouse) Backslang. She later taught it to my sisters and me when we were kids!”
“My sisters and I were very lucky to have had our own Florence Nightingale growing up. We miss her greatly.”
Tim
Before becoming a nurse, Joan trained from a young age at the Grandison School of Dancing in Norbury and later became a professional dancer after leaving Alder Hey.
After the War, she met and married her husband, the renowned pickpocket magician Mark Raffles—who didn’t hang up his hat until the age of 97!
Alder Hey was originally a workhouse before becoming a hospital for children in 1914. During World War II, it was also used to care for Allied and German soldiers (guarded by US police). With accommodation at a maximum, 10 extra brick huts were built at the far end of the hospital to house the military. Any soldiers who were well enough would help carry children to shelters during air raids.
If you are interested in finding out more about our history, visit the ‘Our History’ page by clicking here.