ABSTRACT
Doreen Bates’ diary opens in September 1940 when she was a single woman aged 32 and a Tax Inspector in the Civil Service. She stated that the purpose of the diary was to record, for Mass Observation, the details of everyday life. The first entries did this meticulously, describing air raids and the damage caused by them, the difficulties of travelling to and from work and the endless delays of trains and buses. Doreen Bates’ diary is an important documentation of the way in which political struggle is fought out in everyday life. Women such as Doreen have contributed in a significant way to the fight against oppression by challenging the institutions and policies that inhibit change. Her diary is an impressive record of that fight. Doreen Bates’ contemporary counterpart is currently running a campaign to win the right to married quarters. The official ruling allowing women to stay on in the Services after having children was changed in 1990.
