Bletchley Park's Margaret Betts, from Ipswich, dies aged 99

Margaret Betts, nee Booth, possessed an exceptionally logical mind.

At just 19, she was recruited to join the Wrens at Bletchley Park, working around the clock to unpick German and Japanese secret messages at the height of the Second World War.

 “She had that analytical brain right up until the end,” said Margaret’s son, Jonathan.

Margaret was born on December 27, 1923, to Daniel and Dorothy Booth.

Margaret and her brothers, Pat and John, all attended St John’s School in Cauldwell Hall Road, and later went on to study at Ipswich School after all three of them won scholarships.

Margert’s fierce intelligence was apparent at an early age. However, she always credited her headmistress at St John’s, Miss Mills, for her solid education, and St John’s church where she taught at the Sunday School for the “fine moral code” she lived by for the rest of her life.

In 1942 as the war continued to rage, Margaret was selected for ‘special war service’ at Bletchley Park.

“Men in dark suits came and told her she would be doing some ‘important work’, but they didn’t tell her what it was,” said Jonathan. “What they did say was that she must never, ever tell anyone about it.”

The details of her duties would be a closely guarded secret that Margaret kept for more than 40 years. She finally revealed the truth to her children in the 1980s.

Margaret Betts was recruited to join the Wrens at Bletchley Park when she was just 19. Image: Family of Margaret Betts (Image: Family of Margaret Betts)

Margaret possessed a first-class analytical mind. Image: Family of Margaret Betts (Image: Family of Margaret Betts)

“They were operating the decoding bombes. These were Alan Turing’s very early mechanical computers,” explained Jonathan. “You fed in the coded message and set the machine running. It would chunter away sometimes for hours, and eventually stopped.”

When the machine stopped, it meant that it had identified something which appeared to be a translated code. The Wrens would print out the code and try to make sense of the message on their own Enigma machines.

Sometimes, they would have a breakthrough and the new information would be sent to the fighting forces.

“They worked long hours, and worked through the night,” said Jonathan. “Every minute, in fact every second, mattered.”

Margaret was a mother of five and a grandmother of three. Image: Robert S. Harris (London) (Image: Robert S. Harris (London))

Margaret and her husband Anthony on their honeymoon in 1947. Image: Family of Margaret Betts (Image: Family of Margaret Betts)

Nevertheless, the Wrens still found opportunities to let their hair down. Parties and concerts would be held at the nearby American Airbases. With ample food and handsome serviceman, the Wrens looked forward to these parties immensely.

“When the Wrens at Bletchley Park arrived in their Jeeps, my mother remembered one of the Americans saying, ‘Ah – here comes the crème de la crème!” laughed Jonathan.

In 1947, Margaret married Anthony Sneezum, a former prisoner of war whose family had founded well-known jewellery watchmaker’s business in Fore Street during the 1800s.

Margaret, Anthony and their children would later change their last name to Betts.

The couple welcomed five children: William, Helen, Clive, Jonathan and Alice. Margaret worked hard to keep her growing household in order. She was a talented chef and loved to experiment, and the children enjoyed homemade Moussaka and risotto long before the dishes became commonplace.

After Anthony died, Margaret decided that it was time to see the world. Her children accompanied her on trips to Europe, but she visited far-flung countries such as China, Russia, Egypt and Mexico alone, claiming that life really began at 70, not 40.

In her 80s, Margaret visited Bletchley Park once more with Jonathan. Asked to give an account of her wartime experience, she held the group spellbound for more than half an hour.

Margaret kept herself sharp, learning Italian in her 70s and challenging any friend who dared to take her on at Italian Scrabble. However, she gave up on the daily Sudokus in newspapers, as they just weren’t difficult enough.

Margaret Betts died on August 26, 2023. She was four months shy of her 100th birthday.

A funeral for Margaret will be held at Ipswich Cemetery on September 19 at 2.15pm. All who knew Margaret are welcome to attend.

A webcast of the service will be available through the East of England Co-op.