Jane Fawcett | The “Jill” of All Trades, Best Known for Codebreaking in Hut Six of Bletchley Park

Jane Fawcett (née Hughes, 1921–2016) was the “Jill” of all trades. She is best known for her work at Bletchley Park during World War II. First, she was a ballerina at the Royal Ballet School, but she was too tall to be a professional ballerina. Her parents sent her to a language immersion center in St. Moritz, Switzerland, for six months to console her. There she became fluent in German, which led to her codebreaking career at Hut 6 of Bletchley Park, the secret British codebreaking center.

Bletchley Park required long hours under intense pressure in poorly lit, poorly ventilated rooms. The Germans sent messages over Enigma devices. Fawcett typed Enigma messages on Typex machines, which were British adaptations of the German Enigma device. The rooms were poorly lit and not well ventilated.

The German Enigma code was intricate and challenging to decipher. It took roughly 11 years—from the initial Polish breakthrough in 1932 to the Allies’ routine decryption in 1943. British efforts began in 1939 and took four years to achieve consistent success. On May 25, 1941, she deciphered a message revealing the Bismarck’s location and destination. The Royal Navy intercepted and sank the battleship on May 27. The Bismarck was a technological marvel, heavily armed and armored, making it a formidable threat. This was the first significant success of the Bletchley Park operation.

After the war, she studied voice at the Royal Academy of Music. She had a respectable 15-year career as an opera singer and recitalist. After she had a family, Fawcett found it challenging to balance raising a family and touring. As a result, she transitioned into historic preservation with the Victorian Society. From 1963 to 1976, she served as the group’s secretary. She helped to save St Pancras Station and the Midland Grand Hotel from demolition.

Jane Fawcett’s activism earned her the nickname “the furious Mrs. Fawcett” and an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) in 1976.