Mary was born in 1922 in Buckfastleigh, Devon, and spent her childhood there. By the age of 20, while Mary was working for an accountant in Totnes, she was called up and joined the WAAF (Women’s Auxiliary Air Force). Mary was posted to RAF Coastal Command St Eval,...
A Celebration of Bishopsteignton Women
An ongoing project to celebrate women’s stories in Bishopsteignton through posters, exhibitions, research and oral histories.
Christine Hill, MBE.
Christine Hill moved to Bishopsteignton in 2010 but had been coming to the village for holidays since her childhood. Her parents owned a house and a chicken farm above the village, which her aunt and uncle ran, and that’s where her childhood summers were spent on...
Fran Edwards, BEM
Fran and her husband Nigel have lived in Bishopsteignton for over 44 years and for most of that time she has been volunteering for various charities and good causes. In 2018 she was nominated for a British Empire Medal in the New Year Honours List. Fran had earned her...
Molly Coombe
Molly Coombe was born on 18th October 1929 to parents Grace Coombe neé Loud and Philip Coombe. She may have been born at a local hospital but the family lived, and Molly grew up, in a house called 'Locarno' on Berry Hill, Bishopsteignton. As a girl, Molly's favourite...
Sheila Maureen Robbins, 1932-2021: A Tribute
Sheila Robbins, née Skinner was born in County Cork in Ireland in January 1932, to Sydney Parnell Skinner, a Sergeant in the Royal Engineers and Margery Mary Davey. When Sheila was very young, the family moved back to Bishopsteignton where her father had been born....