Ruby Loftus was 21 years old in 1942. Her initial training on general machining work lasted for a year. Subsequently Ruby was selected to tackle the screwing of the breech ring, a particularly demanding machining operation.

Screwing the breech ring of a Bofors anti-aircraft gun was considered one of the most highly skilled jobs in the factory, a task usually requiring an apprenticeship of eight or nine years.

After completing her initial training, Ruby was one of only three women selected to handle this difficult task.

Said a colleague, “She was good from the word go. Whatever we gave her to do, she did, and did perfectly. The skilled men in the factory were amazed. She was so good that other workers came to admire her workmanship as if it was a work of art.”

Ruby’s life was to change in January 1943, when she came to the attention of the War Artists’ Advisory Committee as an ‘outstanding factory worker’.

“Mr Galbraith, Superintendent of the Factory where I worked, sent for me and told me that Dame Laura Knight was coming to the factory on February 1st to paint me while I was working. Dame Laura was delayed a number of times and eventually turned up in the Factory on March 1st.”
- Ruby Loftus