‘Now then,’ said Victoria, ‘I have promised to end the concert with the three most popular requests so let’s get on with it!’
First came a rousing version of ‘Land of Hope and Glory’, which was followed by ‘Jerusalem’, in which she expertly and generously conceded centre stage to the nurses for the last two lines:
‘Till we have built Jerusalem
In England’s green and pleasant land’
Victoria joined the applause for the nurses and then announced that there would be one more song.
‘I’m not sure if you boys will have heard this one,’ she smiled, ‘and please forgive me for not being Vera Lynn, but here we go . . .’
As she began to sing ‘We’ll Meet Again’ the boys in the wards roared their approval and happily joined in to provide an emotional, if somewhat out-of-tune, end to a thoroughly memorable Christmas concert that left Madge and the girls hot and sticky, but delighted that the patients were so happy.
‘Only one thing went wrong,’ Madge told a heavily perspiring Vera.
‘What on earth are you talking about?’ Vera replied. ‘It couldn’t have gone any better!’
‘Basil couldn’t get the time off to be here and it’s such a shame because Victoria was the lady who sang so beautifully at that Movements mess dance I told you about. He’s so patriotic and loves “Land of Hope and Glory” and “Jerusalem”,’ said Madge.
‘It certainly was a shame,’ said Reverend Davies, ‘because he was the man who did all the work in arranging for Victoria to sing here. He even organised her transport.’
‘Basil? You mean my Basil?’ asked Madge.
‘Yes, Captain Lambert,’ said the Padre. ‘When he heard about your Christmas concert for the troops at 56 IGH he found out that Victoria was still in Chittagong and asked her if she would be so kind as to spend an hour or so entertaining the patients. She agreed without the slightest hesitation. He did a splendid job and certainly knows how to keep a secret,’ added Reverend Davies with a wink.
‘He didn’t drop even the slightest hint about what he was up to,’ said a very proud Madge to Vera and the other girls as they walked over to the wards and started moving the boys from the verandas.
The soldiers, who had clearly enjoyed the afternoon fun, were full of smiles and jokey banter. It was no mean task to help the boys back into bed and Madge was more than a little relieved when her long but thoroughly rewarding shift came to an end. More to the point, it meant she could stroll back up to her basha, clean up and change from her nurse’s uniform into that piqué dress she had bought in Poona, and see Basil for dinner.
First of all, she wanted to thank him for the lovely surprise in arranging for Victoria to sing at the carol concert. But she hadn’t seen him for two whole days and she also wanted to tell him about a surprise invitation they had received. What’s more, he had said that he had something special to discuss with her on Christmas Day. Try as she might, she couldn’t work out what it could be, but her heart sang at the thought of seeing him and she couldn’t imagine being anywhere else on this special day.
18
Auld Lang Syne
‘It was such a shame you couldn’t get away for the carol concert,’ Madge told Basil as they sat having a drink on Christmas night at the end of a day that had left them both so tired they decided to postpone their festive celebrations until New Year’s Eve.
‘The patients all loved the carols and the Gurkhas and Victoria’s beautiful singing in particular,’ said Madge. ‘Thank you, Basil, for that wonderful surprise. Funnily enough, it wasn’t the last surprise of the night because Sally has asked me to be a bridesmaid at her wedding!’
‘Sally? I don’t recognise the name.’
Madge nodded in agreement. ‘It did come as something of a shock. She was the fourth girl in our cabin on the Strathnaver, and a bit of a mystery really. The truth is, I don’t know her all that well, but the good thing is that the actual marriage will be at a church in Chittagong and the reception will be in the hall of the old Governor’s residence overlooking 56 IGH, which means no travelling. I haven’t even met her fiancé yet, but Sally really is lovely so I’m sure he will be too.’
‘You kept that one up your sleeve,’ said Basil.
‘Not really,’ replied Madge, ‘I’ve only just found out myself because when I had a quick cup of tea with Vera at the end of today’s shift there was a letter for me from Sally saying that she was getting married and asking if I would do her the honour of being a bridesmaid. She’s such a nice girl and has had such a sad couple of years I couldn’t refuse. Sally has also asked Vera to be her other bridesmaid. You will come, won’t you?’
‘Of course. But you must be careful about when the wedding is,’ Basil said with a twinkle in his eye. ‘We’ve worked for months without a break and I couldn’t help but wonder if you might enjoy a holiday in Calcutta in the New Year.’
‘A holiday!’ Madge marvelled at the idea. ‘Do you think we could?’ Madge knew that they were allowed time off but most of the girls spent it shopping or going out for meals. A trip to Calcutta with Basil would be such a treat.
A few days later they met again when they went to see a pantomime, IGH & LOW, at a local theatre, which was a joint effort between the two hospitals. Madge was particularly keen to see it because the only two women in
