A CENTENARIAN who played a vital intelligence role for RAF Fighter Command during the Second World War, lived life to the full, and was a loving mother and grandmother, has died.
Phyllis Hill always said she would have loved to have had the opportunity to be a Spitfire pilot during the Battle of Britain in 1940.
She ultimately settled for a different kind of role. As a plotter, Phyllis was responsible for keeping track of hundreds of allied and enemy aircraft across the skies of Britain. She was made to swear on a bible to ensure secrecy and proved herself as a formidable talent in one of the most high-pressure non-combat war environments.
For a lucky few, though, Phyll is remembered as a dedicated mother and grandmother who loved dancing, Elvis Presley and charity work.
Phyllis Marion Case was born on October 1, 1918, in Devizes as the youngest child to Frank and Blanche Case.
Early on in life, Phyll’s intelligence was easy to see. In a school report from 1932 her teacher noted she had “done well” and was “top of her class”.
After leaving school, Phyll became an apprentice at a large draper’s store, before meeting a young man named Horace Hill.
The two married in August 1939 and the Second World War broke out while they were on their honeymoon. Barely into their marriage and the newlyweds were separated when Horace was posted overseas to Egypt where he trained as a wireless operator.
Phyll and Horace didn’t see each other again until the war ended in 1945.
Hopeful for a new adventure, Phyllis couldn’t wait to join up to help the war and dashed off to Bath with an aim to work for the Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF).
She was tested academically and remembered having to spell the word ‘scissors'. She was also asked if she was calm under fire, to which she replied, “well you don’t know until you are – I think so”.
Impressing her assessors, Phyll was made a plotter in Exeter – meaning she was responsible for tracking aircraft movements in a particular sector, changing the plots regularly so that the whole picture of a raid could be monitored.
Her official role title was Clerk Special Duties.
Concentration and accuracy were essential parts of the role, with her superiors often telling Phyll allied pilots’ lives were in her hands and to not “let us down” – she never did.
Despite long hours underground, night shifts and the need for secrecy about her work, Phyll loved the camaraderie of ‘Hut 10’ which 20 WAAFs shared. She declared her time spent as a plotter as “the happiest days” of her life.
Following the conclusion of the war and allied victory, Phyllis was demobilised and reunited with Horace. They quickly picked up where they left off and bought a Post Office shop in Devizes together. In 1951, their son Keith was born.
The family would move various times in line with different Post Office sites in Stapehill, Alderbury and finally Salisbury, where they became semi-retired. Horace worked as an office manager until suffering a devastating stroke in 1981.
Phyll cared for him, while also taking up work in a charity shop as well as an Argos store.
Horace soon became confined to a wheelchair and the pair moved to a flat in Ferndown where Phyll, never one to be idle, took up dancing and continued teaching it well into her 80s.
After more than 50 years of marriage, Horace died in 1994.
So began a new chapter in Phyll’s life. She became close friends with a Dunkirk veteran named Bertie and the two enjoyed each other’s company with several holidays and Christmas’ spent together.
As well as her flair for dancing, Phyll loved music – principally the work of one Elvis Presley. “He had it all”, she used to say, “looks, body and voice”. Her family described her flat in Wellington Road, Bournemouth, as almost a museum of memorabilia, including a life size cut out of the King of Rock ‘n Roll.
Just two weeks before her passing, Phyll was visited by the Veterans’ Association who spent two hours with her and were amazed at her recall and enthusiasm for her time in service.
Phyllis Hill died on Tuesday, June 21, after a short stay in hospital. She was 103 years old.
At her funeral in Bournemouth Crematorium on July 12, her grandson Mark spoke: “It was a long, busy, fulfilling and happy 103 years. Gran was fit, well and looking after herself until a few days before she died, which is exactly as she would have wished.
“Gran was fiercely independent, always ready to help anyone, or anything with fur and feathers, but never expected anything in return, never wanted to be a nuisance or a burden as she put it.
“She was lively and happy and that is how we should remember her.”
Phyllis is survived by her son Keith and his wife Rosemary, grandchildren Mark and Karen and great-grandchild Lottie.
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