Dorothy, 82, Gateshead

A lot of people had them during the war - mainly for the eggs I think because they were hard times. But you could nearly always get chicken or eggs. You always had chicken.

 I used to stay at my aunty's in Embleton when I was a child. From about the age of 9 me Mam would put me on the bus at Haymarket and my aunty would get me off at Embleton, up the coast. I used to go up there for holidays in the summer - I loved the sea. Anyway, there were chickens all over the bloody place up there. They'd just wander in the middle of the road. They knew who you were and they'd follow you all over, I've even seen a chicken trying to get into the bloody sea man!

Harry, Gateshead

My Dad kept 3 crees, so about 50 hens I think? There might not be that many but there seemed like there might have been. I didn't look after them - my father looked after them. He didn't sell the eggs - everything was for us. There were 10 of us in the house - 5 lads and 5 lasses. We never wanted for anything. That was life. Only two cockerels and the rest were hens... for the eggs.

Elsie, Gateshead

My Dad kept hens, ducks and geese - he dug the pond they lived in himself. He had half a dozen at the beginning but they laid eggs and hatched so ended up with a couple of dozen - this was before the war. During the war, my mam looked after them while my dad was away in the navy. We used to give the folks around the area the eggs. People didn't sell things in them days. They just gave them away cos people needed things. We had more than we needed so we gave them away. We never went hungry like - we probably would have starved during the war if it weren't for the eggs.

My dad put them in the range to keep warm when they hatched during the winter.

Dorothy, Stockton

I lived in a farmhouse in the 30s so we had about half a dozen hens - I used to help out with them. There were no jobs so you had to go where the work was, and during the depression you went where the food was. We didn't sell them though because you had to register them if you wanted to sell the eggs. But I just went to feed them because that's just what you did. I didn't keep hens after I left home - I was sick of looking after them! They weren't like pets like they are today.

Jenny, Stockton

I kept hens when I worked on a farm when I was about 15. I liked farm work and I needed a job. There were hundreds! I helped clean them our, helped to feed them, lock them up, and put them away at night. The farm was in Halls during the war. Eggs were rationed so they were useful. I enjoyed it very much.'

Matty, Stockton

We mainly kept them during the war because eggs were rationed. You'd only get one per week so they were like gold. People always wanted an extra one, especially when they were making Christmas Cake and things.