The second world war may have ended 79 years ago, but local residents are still discovering remnants of it's impact.

In may 2022, two undetonated bombs from WW2 were discovered in Poppy Giles’s* southeast London back garden.

 “I had been living over explosives for ten years,” Giles reveals, “It was a scary thought.”

The Giles family had moved out for renovations:the bombs had been discovered by builders who were digging up the patio. 

“[The bomb disposal squad] said that one of the two was too dangerous to take back to the centre and diffuse. They had to take it to a local golf course and diffuse it there.”

Though WW2’S end in 1945 may seem like ancient history, it was only seventy nine years ago. And despite the bulk of the fighting taking place off British soil, and many British cities were subject to a brutal bombing campaign:The Blitz.

“It made me think of all the people killed.” Said Giles.

The Blitz took place from September 1940 to May 1941. It targeted many major cities in Britain, among which were London, Glasgow, Belfast and Bristol. And as is evident from the incident within the Giles Household, its impact reaches to the lives of modern day londoners. In some older areas of the city, there are noticeable gaps between terrace houses–many of which were once bomb sites.

“I would never have expected anything like this to happen,” Said Giles,”However, due to how heavily the street I lived in was bombed during world war two, I fear it may happen again.”


Luckily, undetonated bombs aren’t the only memorials of WW2 in London. Monuments, from windows to obelisks to statues, immortalise the sacrifices made for freedom and safetyIn addition to many people alive during the war still living today.

Places to visit include the London Troops War Memorial in Cornhill, The Women of World War II  statue in Whitehall and The National Submarine War Memorial on Victoria Embankment. 

“Everywhere you look in London, you can see monuments to the Legacy of WW2,” Giles summarises, “This incident has been a real reminder of the destruction caused during WW2 and how many people were affected and are still affected to this day.”

*Names have been changed to protect privacy.