Bletchley Park code breaker dies in Lower Hutt aged 100
Apr 4, 2022 13:32:26 GMT 12
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Post by Dave Homewood on Apr 4, 2022 13:32:26 GMT 12
World War II Bletchley Park code breaker dies aged 100
Nicholas Boyack
12:35, Apr 04 2022
One of the last direct links to the German code-breaking team at Bletchley Park has been lost with the death of Jeanne Sampson.
The 100-year-old, who died in Lower Hutt last week, was 20 when she joined the team that changed the course of World War II by breaking the codes used by the Germans.
Bletchley Park is where the ’ Enigma code was broken by a team led by mathematician Alan Turing, who was portrayed by Benedict Cumberbatch in the 2015 film The Imitation Game.
For much of her life Sampson had kept quiet about her war service, as it was still considered secret.
Although she knew the work involved code breaking, she had little concept of what they were actually doing. Staff were not allowed to talk to each other about the work and were segregated to reduce the risk of gossip or people leaking information.
It was not until the publication of a book in 1974 that the British even acknowledged that Bletchley existed. Staff were not recognised with medals until 2009.
Jeanne Sampson worked at code-breaking base Bletchley Park during WWII. She turned 100 earlier this year.
Sampson worked at Bletchley and other secret installations for four years, including a period teaching women how to use the machine that was able to tell the allied leaders what Adolf Hitler was planning.
In a 2015 interview, she said she was very proud of what she had done to help shorten the war, but she noted she was part of a big team.
"I was just a little cog on the wheel."
Jeanne Sampson.
After the war, she worked in fashion before coming to New Zealand with her husband, Burma veteran Oliver Sampson, in 1951.
Eastbourne historian Julia Stuart said Sampson was an “amazing lady” who led a fascinating life.
“She was always incredibly elegantly dressed and had perfect hair every day.”
It was not only her time at Bletchley Park that made her interesting.
After the war she worked for Sir Norman Bishop Hartnell, a leading British fashion designer, best known for his work for the ladies of the Royal Family.
Stuart interviewed her in 2014, where she recalled resigning from her role at Bletchley Park. She had been offered the chance of more training and learning to drive, once the war ended, but she wanted to do something different.
Jeanne Sampson in 2015. In later life she enjoyed golf and playing bridge.
“I wanted to get out by then, I wanted to do something glamorous. So I went up to the West End and wandered around through various fashion places and ended up at Norman Hartnell.”
Working for Hartnell she met legendary actors Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier.
Stuart asked her if she had ever felt constrained by the secrecy of working on such a hush-hush project, which she could not discuss with her family.
“I came here, had two little boys, played golf, had a nice life and never really thought about it. It was in the past.”
She said it had been hard not knowing if their work was having an impact on the war but she did recall a visit from Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
“When I was still at Bletchley Park, Churchill came down and said, ‘jolly good shows girls, keep it up, you’re the geese that lay the golden eggs and don’t cackle!’ I thought that was lovely.”
www.stuff.co.nz/national/128256064/world-war-ii-bletchley-park-code-breaker-dies-aged-100
Nicholas Boyack
12:35, Apr 04 2022
One of the last direct links to the German code-breaking team at Bletchley Park has been lost with the death of Jeanne Sampson.
The 100-year-old, who died in Lower Hutt last week, was 20 when she joined the team that changed the course of World War II by breaking the codes used by the Germans.
Bletchley Park is where the ’ Enigma code was broken by a team led by mathematician Alan Turing, who was portrayed by Benedict Cumberbatch in the 2015 film The Imitation Game.
For much of her life Sampson had kept quiet about her war service, as it was still considered secret.
Although she knew the work involved code breaking, she had little concept of what they were actually doing. Staff were not allowed to talk to each other about the work and were segregated to reduce the risk of gossip or people leaking information.
It was not until the publication of a book in 1974 that the British even acknowledged that Bletchley existed. Staff were not recognised with medals until 2009.
Jeanne Sampson worked at code-breaking base Bletchley Park during WWII. She turned 100 earlier this year.
Sampson worked at Bletchley and other secret installations for four years, including a period teaching women how to use the machine that was able to tell the allied leaders what Adolf Hitler was planning.
In a 2015 interview, she said she was very proud of what she had done to help shorten the war, but she noted she was part of a big team.
"I was just a little cog on the wheel."
Jeanne Sampson.
After the war, she worked in fashion before coming to New Zealand with her husband, Burma veteran Oliver Sampson, in 1951.
Eastbourne historian Julia Stuart said Sampson was an “amazing lady” who led a fascinating life.
“She was always incredibly elegantly dressed and had perfect hair every day.”
It was not only her time at Bletchley Park that made her interesting.
After the war she worked for Sir Norman Bishop Hartnell, a leading British fashion designer, best known for his work for the ladies of the Royal Family.
Stuart interviewed her in 2014, where she recalled resigning from her role at Bletchley Park. She had been offered the chance of more training and learning to drive, once the war ended, but she wanted to do something different.
Jeanne Sampson in 2015. In later life she enjoyed golf and playing bridge.
“I wanted to get out by then, I wanted to do something glamorous. So I went up to the West End and wandered around through various fashion places and ended up at Norman Hartnell.”
Working for Hartnell she met legendary actors Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier.
Stuart asked her if she had ever felt constrained by the secrecy of working on such a hush-hush project, which she could not discuss with her family.
“I came here, had two little boys, played golf, had a nice life and never really thought about it. It was in the past.”
She said it had been hard not knowing if their work was having an impact on the war but she did recall a visit from Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
“When I was still at Bletchley Park, Churchill came down and said, ‘jolly good shows girls, keep it up, you’re the geese that lay the golden eggs and don’t cackle!’ I thought that was lovely.”
www.stuff.co.nz/national/128256064/world-war-ii-bletchley-park-code-breaker-dies-aged-100
