Editing Jean Metcalfe (section)

==Early life==
Jean Metcalfe was the eldest child of Guy Vivian Metcalfe, a railway clerk with the [[Southern Railway (UK)|Southern Railway]] at [[London Waterloo railway station|Waterloo station]], and Gwendoline Annie, née Reed. Her family were a typical lower-middle-class family of the time. Their house had no bathroom and they used her father's Southern Railway privilege tickets to get them to their most ambitious holiday destination, [[Cornwall]].

She excelled at [[elocution]] and [[art]] at the local county school, and formed a passionate love of the radio at home. She joined the ''[[Children's Hour]]'' radio circle, and entered competitions which entitled the winners to visit [[Broadcasting House]], headquarters of the [[BBC]]. She excelled at school dramatics, and once played [[Queen Victoria]].