For most people, May 8, 1945, was a day to remember, with crowds filling London\u2019s streets as the nation celebrated the end of the Second World War in Europe.<\/p>\n
But for Peter Lake, it was more than just Victory in Europe Day – it was the day his life changed forever.<\/p>\n
The VE Day Trafalgar Square celebrations for the end of the Second World War. The future Mrs Sheila Lake is shown in the foreground on the right. Picture: Peter Lake<\/p>\n
Because amid the thousands of revellers packed into Trafalgar Square, the 19-year-old RAF engineer met the woman who would become his wife.<\/p>\n
Now living in Tenterden and celebrating his 100th birthday today, Peter looks back on that extraordinary moment as the beginning of a love story that would last more than seven decades.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were probably the only people who met each other in Trafalgar Square on VE Day and got married,\u201d he told KentOnline.<\/p>\n
At the time, Peter was working as a mechanical engineer for the RAF and living in London.<\/p>\n
Among the crowds that day was 18-year-old shop worker Sheila Corr, who had travelled down from Yorkshire for the celebrations.<\/p>\n
Peter Lake, from Tenterden, with his card celebrating his 100th birthday from the King and Queen. Picture: Barry Goodwin<\/p>\n
\u201cMy pal and I were on leave for a few days, so I said, \u2018Let\u2019s go up to town’,\u201d Peter recalled.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd as everybody did in those days, we started to feed the pigeons.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen I noticed a couple of young ladies quite near doing the same thing.<\/p>\n
\u201cI said, \u2018Let\u2019s go over and talk to them\u2019. We had a nice day with them. And we spent the rest of our leave showing them around London.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was a chance meeting that led to a lifelong partnership.<\/p>\n
Peter in his RAF uniform during the war. Picture: Peter Lake<\/p>\n
\u201cAs soon as I started talking to Sheila, I recognised that she was a very nice, easy-going person,\u201d Peter said.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019d talk to everybody and anybody. And she had a lovely, nice, warm personality, which I soon came to recognise.\u201d<\/p>\n
Five years later, in 1950, the couple married in Sheila\u2019s home town of Thornaby-on-Tees, North Yorkshire.<\/p>\n
They went on to have four children and were married for 68 years before Sheila\u2019s death in 2018, aged 89.<\/p>\n
Peter and Sheila Lake on their wedding day in 1950. Picture: Peter Lake<\/p>\n
After the war, Peter embarked on a varied career, selling everything from insurance to ice cream, before becoming national sales manager for Scot Meat Products Ltd in Bletchley, Buckinghamshire.<\/p>\n
To support his family, he often juggled two jobs, including stints as a bingo caller.<\/p>\n
His daughter Karen Stuart described her father as adventurous and devoted to family life.<\/p>\n
She told KentOnline: \u201cAlthough dad has never been a sporty person, he\u2019s always been ready to give something a go. For example, motor racing, cycling, paragliding, skiing, and even going up in a Goodyear blimp.<\/p>\n
\u201cDad has always been a family man who liked nothing better in his younger years than to drive off at the weekends with his family to picnic near a river, sit on a beach or play cricket in a park.<\/p>\n
Photo taken in the 1970s of Peter at Brands Hatch race circuit. Picture: Peter Lake<\/p>\n
\u201cVery few weekends were spent at home. Holidays were usually spent abroad and, when we kids had left the nest, he enjoyed cruises with Mum.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now at 100, Peter still lives independently, travelling into Tenterden town centre each day on his mobility scooter to shop and attend local coffee mornings.<\/p>\n
He keeps up with computer skills, manages his own tasks, and sends birthday cards to every member of his growing family.<\/p>\n
Asked about the secret to his longevity, Peter credits a combination of good genes, moderation, and luck.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s good genes. My mother lived to be 92.<\/p>\n
Peter Lake turns 100 today. Picture: Barry Goodwin<\/p>\n
\u201cI have done nothing special except try to live a decent life, be good to everybody, and here I am.<\/p>\n
\u201cI never smoked, but my father did: Woodbines, which were in those days the working man\u2019s cigarettes. Eventually, he died from emphysema as a result.<\/p>\n
\u201cThankfully, I have a good set of lungs. My heart is quite reasonable; I take care of it. But it\u2019s just the luck of the draw.\u201d<\/p>\n
Peter was born in Kensal Rise, north-west London, on August 27, 1925. He grew up in difficult times as his parents worked multiple jobs to get through the Depression.<\/p>\n
When the Blitz began, his family moved to nearby East Acton, and like many youngsters, he remembers chasing pieces of shrapnel after air raids.<\/p>\n
Photographs of Peter and Sheila Lake in their early post-war time together and their later years. Picture: Peter Lake<\/p>\n
\u201cAs soon as the air raid all-clear went, us lads used to dash into the street to try and find pieces of shrapnel,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe didn\u2019t really grasp how serious it was, although a house nearby was bombed and people killed.\u201d<\/p>\n
The world of 1925 when Peter Lake was born. KMG graphic<\/p>\n
After a century filled with love, family and adventure, Peter remains modest about his achievements and grateful for the life he has lived.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have done nothing special except try to live a decent life, be good to everybody, and here I am.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For most people, May 8, 1945, was a day to remember, with crowds filling London\u2019s streets as the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":376744,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7757],"tags":[748,393,4884,609,495,257,83509,69243,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-376743","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-london","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-england","10":"tag-great-britain","11":"tag-human-interest","12":"tag-kent","13":"tag-london","14":"tag-syndicate","15":"tag-tenterden","16":"tag-uk","17":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115098908385095472","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/376743","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=376743"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/376743\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/376744"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=376743"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=376743"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=376743"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}