Codebreaking and Warfare – the Listeners, the Y Stations and the role of women

n this final part, Mike discusses the role of women both in the Y Stations and at Bletchley Park itself during the Second World War. Y stations were the locations for the “Listeners” who were mainly women. Without the listeners, Bletchley Park could not have done its work. Two-thirds of the staff at Bletchley Park were women. Many operated the Bombes (machines based on a Polish design but improved by Alan Turing for cracking the Enigma Codes) and some were also involved as codebreakers in their own right. This is part four in a series of four talks. You can watch the first, second and third parts of Mike’s four-part series on YouTube now!