Tell me one interesting fact about one of your grandparents

[listsandbudgets]

Because I'm bored and nosey.

My nan could speak Italian but only in the imperative because she and my grand dad had Italian prisoners of war on their farm during world war 2

My grandad was part of the party who were sent in to cut down Mussolini.

Grandmother nearly got herself arrested with two of the great aunts while in Belgium (it was something to do with knitted shorts, never did get the rest of the story)

Grandad liberated from one of the big concentration camps.

One was involved in the development of radar during WWII - not spoken of at the time so as he couldn't talk about his war work the family thought he was working as a spy.

One served in Africa and spoke German - but didn't let the Germans know - resulting in him learning some useful info.

Some of the animal exhibits in the Natural History museum were stuffed by my grandad.

My grandad had a tattoo on his arm of a woman's name that wasn't my nan
I have no idea who Mabel was

My grandfather was President of The British Friesian Cattle Society. He sold bulls and heifers for huge amounts of money but never bought any land. He was also a bully and tyrant and my DF had to escape and set up his own farm. He cast a long shadow and now I have been caught up in the farming net.

My grandmother was a professional opera singer. When she went on tour before she married my grandfather was not allowed to stay in the same town as her let alone the same hotel.

My grandfather used to take exams for fun.

My grandad was born in 1899 and fought in both world wars. He was just old enough at the end of ww1 and just young enough at the beginning of ww2. He has medals from both.

My grandad was in the navy during WW2. One day he slipped over on deck and went skidding towards the edge (aircraft carrier), he would have gone overboard but for someone grabbing the hood of his duffel coat.

My grandad was a conscientious objector during ww2. He refused to fight so worked in the fire brigade all through the war.

My grandmother was the oldest of 20 and outlived all her siblings by 30 plus years.

My maternal grandfather grew his own tobacco. I remember the leaves set out to dry in their front room.

my grandmother was a 'French embroiderer' and she used to sew the Kings name on his clothes. my mother has some of the very fine needles she used.
During the war she had two small children and refused to take them down the tube during the air raids, mainly because of her fear of TB and she didn't want her kids seeing the 'tarts' ply their trade against the tube walls.

My grandfather was told his mother died after his birth, he was wet nursed by a neighbour until he was put on evaporated milk. I found out that she died when he was five. The sad background is that his older adult brothers died in WW1, and suspect she had severe depression after being pregnant and giving birth to another boy. I also suspect that my great grandfather made sure my granddad drove buses as a job as it stopped him from being called up to war.
During the war his bus was used to collect bodies during the blitz in the same part of London as my husbands grandfather, he was a fireman. We often wonder if they met or passed each other during the war.

My grandfather lost his eye due to a tooth abscess when he was a child in 1910.

My grandmother had lunch with Prince Charles years and years ago, and she kept the glass that he used!

my grandfather went into the icy water off a ship in the war and it brought on asthma for the rest of his life apparently
my grandmother was married befoe she married my grandfather very unusual in the 1920s she had a son she never spoke about from her first marriage that she sent to live with her brother as he didnt get on with his new half siblings. In between my aunt and my mother she had a baby that was either stillborn or died at birth but she never told my mum so she never knew she told me though as a young child and i told my mum!!

My grandad was one of the people who worked on the ERNIE premium bonds machine in the 1950s. They were paid quite a lot and my grandparents used the money to leave their rented rooms in London and buy their first house, which I now live in!

Grandpa was gassed in WW1 with mustard gas. Always had chest problems from that.

My maternal grandfather was a victorian. (Born Nov 1900).
My maternal grandmother was in service in the London residence of a member of the nobility.

My grandfather was in the Merchant Navy in WW2 and went to New York, where he and his colleagues were treated like celebs – taken to the Met Opera and asked which film star they'd like to meet.

My granddad chose Bette Davis.

My Grandma's mother "owned half of North London". Sadly not in the family anymore...

One of my grandparents was an author and won an international book prize: not the Booker, but along those lines.

My nan was my mum’s step mum and she took on, cared for and loved my grandad’s 8 children even though he didn’t actually tell her about them before they were married.

My grandmother survived the bombing of Dresden.