The fascinating true story of how one woman’s life was transformed by the First World War will be revealed during a talk next week.
Margaret Burns was born in 1889 into an ordinary working class family in the north of England.
Much of her early life was spent in the Durham area, where she met and married John-George, a coal miner.
After their marriage, her husband volunteered for Kitchener’s Army but was tragically killed while serving with the Durham Light Infantry near Arras in 1917.
His death led to a dramatic string of events, with Margaret forced to make some heart-breaking and shocking decisions – including abandoning her young son.
Authors Clive and Kath Richardson, whose novel The Woman Who Didn’t Exist tells Margaret’s story, will talk about their investigations during a talk at the DLI Museum and Durham Art Gallery on Saturday, 17 October.
The pair will ask whether Margaret was the devious and self-centred woman many thought her to be or merely an unseen casualty of The Great War.
The talk, which is part of the museum’s First World War Military Talks programme, starts at 2pm.
Tickets, priced at £3.50, are available on the door or in advance by calling the museum on 03000 266 590.