Last modified on Sun 2 May 2021 14.41 EDT
Patricia Brown, who has died aged 103, was one of the leading female British codebreakers during the second world war, initially with the Government Code & Cypher School at Bletchley Park and then as the head of its German diplomatic section, based in Berkeley Street in Mayfair. Known then as Pat Bartley, she not only played a key role in the breaking of the main German diplomatic code, Floradora, but her skilful leadership and management of cooperation with her US counterparts ensured a difficult system was broken far more quickly than expected.
She had been persuaded to work at Bletchley Park, Buckinghamshire, by Emily Anderson, the leading British female codebreaker during the interwar period, who was billeted on her parents at their home in Swanbourne, eight miles from the wartime codebreaking base.
While the majority of festive events fell foul of the Covid pandemic, an intrepid quartet of divers from the Blackwater Sub Aqua Club (SAC) still took the plunge for their annual St Stephen s Day Fin Swim.
Normally one of the club s most important annual fundraisers, the event would ordinarily attract a large number of spectators to watch club members brave the frigid waters of the River Blackwater.
However, this year just four divers took part in the event, with club spokesperson Timmy Carey saying strict social distancing measures were in place throughout. This year has been difficult for the club in terms of fundraising with members having to self-fund our activities, which has put a strain on our finances so the initial decision to cancel the Fin Swim came as a bit blow, said Timmy.