Spirit of the Blitz lives on in new garden shed

1940s history fan recreates wartime bar in his garden in remarkable lockdown project

History fan Mark Ilsley (55) from Whittlesey has used his time in lockdown to complete his garden project, a 1940s themed bar.

Mark, an enthusiastic wartimehistory reenactor, began work on the 10 feet by 10 feet structure in January and has now completed the majority of the work.

The bar has been styled with a clear 1940s theme in mind. Tin hats, a haversack popular at the time and period poster adorn the walls, camouflage netting has been used on the ceiling and the windows have been taped over in a criss cross pattern.

Residents at the time were advised that this would prevent the glass from splintering and flying into people’s faces in the event of a bomb falling in the near vicinity.

Theinspiration camefrom Mark and his wife Ann’s love of history.

The pair are regulars at 1940s events across Cambridgeshire, such as Ramsey, Holme and Stibbington and attend wearing period dress.

The majority of the materials used in the project have beenrecycled, withMark’sjob as a caretaker at nearby New Road Primary School providing him access to discarded materials.

He said: “I’ve got quite lucky really. The school is building a new wing, so anything that could potentially be useful that was destined for the skip I jumped in and

claimed.

“The bi-foldable doors are from the school library, the lino is off-cuts from the new build, the plastic sheeting is from the old bike sheds and even some of the furniture has been donated.

“It’s been a really nice project to work on. I’ve not had a lot of extra time off because the school has remained open during lockdown but it’s kept me busy and I’m almost finished.

“I was introduced to the 1940s circuit by a friend, it’s really enjoyable and you get to meet a lot of people and I’m looking forward to having a place to entertain them when safe to do so.”

‘It’s been a really nice project to work on MarkIlsley

Mark and Ann are enthusiastic wartime reenactors and enjoy spending time in their wartime garden bar.

Mark and Ann Ilsley in their wartimethemed shed which was a lockdown garden project.

The bar is mainly made from recycled materials.