My mother, Dimitra Bailey, who has died aged 97, was a refugee, a Red Cross nurse, a migrant worker and a war bride who made a new start in the UK. Dimitra’s early life was shaped by war, famine, poverty and displacement. She was born near Smyrna, now Izmir, Turkey, to Ioannis Irianoglou, a merchant, and his wife, Martha (nee Kolokotroni). The family were Ottoman Greeks whose ancestors had lived in the area for generations. Continue reading...