Illicite war-time love affair revealed by Leamington family

Gill Flower, Bernard Flower's daughter-in-law, with Karoline Alexander and Bernard's grandchildren Robin and Gerhard Bosdorff at the Southam Heritage Collection Exhibition.

Karoline Alexander and her brothers Robin and Gerhard Bosdorff, along with their aunt Gill Flower, recently visited the collection’s First World War exhibition, Keep the Home Fires Burning, as it features their grandfather Bernard Flower from Bascote, who served in the war and returned safely, along with all five of his brothers.

But what exhibition curator Val Brodie did not know, was that in 1944, Bernard’s daughter Marjorie fell in love with German prisoner-of-war, Alfred Bosdorff, who was at a camp in Birdingbury. After the war, the couple married and had three children - Karoline, Robin and Gerhard.

Val said: “Hearing about this romance was an extraordinary occasion. It was like a plot of a film! We are continuing to collect stories both from both world wars, so this is definitely one for the archives.”

The exhibition runs at Vivian House in Market Hill, Southam, until April 30 and is open on Tuesdays and Saturdays, 10am to 12pm. For details, see www.southam heritage.org

To add any local war-time stories to the collection, call Val on 01926 61812179.