I enrolled at St James� Secretarial College where I found I was older than the other students, who had mostly come straight from school. This, however, was an advantage as, being more mature, I sailed through and completed the full course before the end of that year. I enjoyed the subjects and was particularly interested in the German which I did as an extra, as I was keen on expanding my knowledge of languages. See the college account.

The College was in Gloucester Place and overlooked the gardens and back of Buckingham Palace. Walking between College and the Helena Club, I was delighted one day to see King George riding in Rotten Row, and the statue of Peter Pan and the Round Pond in Kensington Gardens became familiar sights to me. I was, however, disappointed when I saw the original Watts statue of Energy in Hyde Park, as it was solidly on the ground and I felt that the copy at Rhodes� Memorial in Groote Schuur was in such a tremendously fitting site.

There was a canteen at the College, but often we walked out to have a sandwich in a nearby Milk Bar. For tea at St James�, before the walk back home, I really enjoyed their jam doughnuts!

When I went by bus, I learnt very soon to choose my bus carefully as one day I boarded the correct number at nearby Victoria depot to go back to the Club, and I didn�t notice that we crossed the Thames - and only when we reached Kennington Oval did I realise that I�d come far south instead of travelling in the opposite direction.

Notting Hill Gate was our nearest suburban shopping centre, and there one day I had my hair cut short again. Purchases included a blouse for �three eleven three� which was three shillings and elevenpence three farthings. Stockings were usually Bear Brand rayon ones, much cheaper than the silk ones we all preferred but could not always afford. When stockings laddered we mended them with a neat little gadget like a very fine crochet hook with a stopper. At the Helena Club �paper� tickets were often available at the last minute, and a number of us would hire a taxi and dash off to the theatre, and on these occasions we sat in some luxury. When we paid for our own tickets, we queued for the gods. On Sundays when I was in London I went to various churches, all steeped in tradition.

I spent some time in the British Museum researching material specifically asked for by Joan Searle in Cape Town. I don�t remember the subject, but I enjoyed the task.

Often during weekends a few of us would train out into the country and walk for miles, stopping for a pub lunch. Frequent comrades in these walks were Vera Cooper, who later married Harvey Purchase and introduced me to Pat in 1935, and Pam Munro (now Rothschild, living in Cape Town) a South African who lived with her grandmother while she was at St James�.