Photograph search

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When I was about 11 (I am now 59) I unwittingly started a family tradition of calling any unlikely story told by anyone a 'gas mask wedding'. This came about when I reminded my mother of a story I firmly believed she had told me about going to a wedding during the war during which an air raid started and the entire wedding party had to don their gas masks.

This reduced the family to fits of laughter and as I grew older I realized how impossible that had been.

Roll on about 30 years and I was in Waterstones in Sheffield just before Christmas and saw a book of photographs . The cover picture was of a wedding party clambering across the piled rubble of a bombed church, and yes, you've guessed it, everyone was wearing gas masks. I was absolutely transfixed by this picture but didn't have enough money on me to buy the book.

Needless to say when we all met at Christmas no-one believed me but. the book (if not the wedding I remembered hearing about) really did exist. I have spent the last 20 years searching for that book and have never even caught a whisper of it. If anyone has ever seen the book or the picture I would be eternally grateful if you could give me some information, either book title , photo title, possible photographers.
 
If you can remember the exact year you could write to waterstones and ask for a list of books sold in that year?

Would also help anyone search for you :)
 
Hi Greywolf.

Try getting in touch with some of the re-enactment groups to see if they can help identify the photo and thus the book. I know some of the people there have massive private library's of books concerning WW2, and as its such an unusual shot, they may recognise it.

Sounds like it would have been a newspaper shot, "Life goes on despite Her Hitlers bombs" kind of stuff.

Another thought, gas masks tend to indicate the early years of the war as with gas not being used, people soon got fed up bothering with them.

Hope this helps.
 
A quick google came up with this image - which appears to be all over the net.

Click to view

I doubt it's the one you're looking for though.

You may have some luck here, although I couldn't find an image that matches your description fully.
 
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Very helpful everyone. Thank you.

It is entirely possible that the photograph, although having the authentic look and feel of a Picture Post image, was actually staged, post WWII.

I'll keep searching.
 
NOT MY PICTURE- Stumbled across it on Ican has cheezburger's weddinator section and remembered this thread.
2ace0574-9827-4ed9-aac1-841b87d73975.jpg
 
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