From the Mirror archives October 20, 1942

Today’s picture shows a little boy holding a banana while his playmates gaze longingly through the metal railings hoping for a bite of the exotic fruit. As an imported perishable item, bananas were virtually impossible to get hold of during the Second World War and weren’t on the list of rationed goods because they didn’t need to be. Most children growing up during the war didn’t see their first banana until they were 10 or 12 years old.