A Nightingale Sang in Berkely Square - Vera Lynn

When two lovers meet in Mayfair So the legands tell
Songbirds sing and winter turns to spring
Every winding street in Mayfair falls beneath the spell
I know such enchantment can be
'cause it happened one evening to me
That certain night, the night we met,
there was magic abroad in the air,
There were angels dining at the Ritz
and A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square
I may be right, I may be wrong,
but I'm perfectly willing to swear
That when you turn'd and smiled at me
A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square
The moon that lingered over London town;
poor puzzled moon, he wore a frown
How could he know we two were so in love,
the whole darn world seemed upside down
The streets of town were paved with stars,
it was such a romantic affair,
And as we kissed and said goodnight,
A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square
Our homeward step was just as light
as the tap dancing feet of Astair
And like an echo far away,
A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square
I know 'cause I was there, that night in Berkeley Square

[@morgylyn]

You have made my night again,may blessings lite upon you. Got any Ann Shelton,

[@xenu-dark-tony]

Astonishing to see that piece of film, and perfect for the song. Enormous thanks to you Wearyoldman.
My mum was a Londoner, working in the West End in various nail parlours and beauticians, about 17 years old when this film was shot, and would have been in that area at the time. It is exactly as I'd pictured it from her description, with lots and lots of men in uniform, buses, military vehicles and everyone wearing a hat. The adverts around Piccadilly were all, I believe, for British products, and probably the only foreign ones would have been American. This seems to be around 1940-41 by the looks of it - Eros was removed to safety and the Shaftesbury Monument supporting him sandbagged and timbered 'for the duration'.
Mum eventually had lots of American and Canadian boyfriends and we still have the photos and letters from the ones who made it past the liberation and got back home, hoping she would move out there.
To this day I always sing this song whilst driving around Berkeley Square, though it is now all posh night clubs and even posher car dealers. If you'd have told the wartime folk there would one day be German Rolls Royces and Bentleys for sale there that cost a quarter of a million pounds, and electric hook-ups for silent electric cars, and barely any British people any more they would have said you were a shilling short of the full quid. Oh to be transported back to wartime London.

[@wearyoldman]

657BIueArmy Great comment 657BlueArmy. Thanks.

[@wearyoldman]

Thanks for commenting SalemStorm. Like you I also never experienced those days and I'm not sure I would ever want to... but Vera would probably make life bearable.

[@wearyoldman]

Sorry... I've got no Anne Shelton... I wish I did because she had such a great voice.