After volunteering for the Navy, Reg was first sent to America on the HMS Asbury, one of the first minesweepers. He chuckles at the memory of mistakenly identifying a barracuda as a torpedo on their way to Bermuda. While sailing back over the Atlantic, the ship was attacked off the Irish Coast, and three of the convoy were sunk. Reg then joined the HMS Gazelle in the Fortieth Minesweeping Flotilla. He relates his memories of D-Day. The minesweepers were the first to arrive, and the crew were at action stations for 3 days straight, sweeping all 4 beaches. Reg recalls a German shell missing their boat narrowly during this time. His ship also picked up some survivors, but Reg was told to only take the dog tags of the dead. A memory that sticks with him is a soldier putting a flamethrower into a pillbox on Gold Beach, and all the Germans jumping out.  The HMS Gazelle was sent to Plymouth after being damaged at the end of August, so their place in the flotilla was taken by HMS Plyades. Whilst on leave in England, Reg sees the news that this ship has been sunk along with two others in the convoy, and recalls saying to his father ‘That’s my flotilla Dad.’ Reg then leaves the Gazelle and goes to the Far East as a Torpedo Man, but says he has always regretted leaving the ship. Reg describes the war as life-changing, and was glad to have been part of D-Day, although he was only 18 at the time. His story demonstrates the intensity of D-Day, and the tireless work of people like him that made the mission successful. 

In 1942, Fred undertook 16 weeks of infantry training in Reading, joining the fifth battalion of the Royal Berkshire Regiment. He was first sent to Marlborough in Suffolk to undertake beach defence, but after the Germans did not land there, he was reassigned to Scotland to train in a beach group for the Normandy landings alongside a Canadian division. He trained in small assault craft out to sea and undertook extensive training in handling different cargo and rope tying, becoming an experienced stevedore, a loader and unloader of ships. Fred was next stationed near Waterlooville for further training, before going to Southampton Number 1 dock to sail for Normandy with many other ships. He describes being caught in a storm and sheltering in Calshot before being allowed to leave the harbour. Fred describes the chaos and noise of the gun battles and shell fire of the Normandy landings. Whilst there he manned a Bren gun that he was proud to have never left during Operation Overlord. Fred unloaded thousands upon thousands of cargo, including barbed wire, rations and other essential supplies, sometimes standing in four foot of water. At the same time, he was also helped to move prisoners, casualties and many bodies from the beach after joining the Forth Wiltshire Regiments platoon. Fred describes being wounded and the nightmares he suffered with but also reflects on the importance of his regiment mates for team moral during and after the war.  

Ken provides a compelling account of his volatile journey through Europe with the 7th Battalion Royal Tank Regiment during World War II. Leaving an unhappy childhood, Ken received his moment of destiny after enlisting into the Royal Tank Regiment at sixteen. He trained as a driver/operator in the 7th Tanks before transporting to Normandy, 2-3 days after the D-day landings; his first taste of luck. Landing on seized beaches, six tanks were offloaded from an LCT. Despite being in the Churchill Regiment, Ken had the misfortune of operating inside a Stuart, a lightly armoured tank which the Germans could easily damage. Adding to the mania, it wasn't long before many officers were replaced for various reasons. This included the promotion of his Captain, resulting in Ken, the Troop Leader's operator, to take up the reins. Following a few gruelling battles, the crew encountered some Canadian troops hammering at the Germans with a field full of 7.2-inch Howitzers. It was decided for the regiment to rest around their position while struggling to sleep against the constant banging of their assault. However, this site would also prove fateful, as dusk approached, Ken beheld a German aircraft, releasing a calamitous rain of bombs from above. The scenes of destruction and pain remained evocative in his memory, from flaming petrol proliferating their surroundings to the agonising screams of their gunner, tragically missing much from the waist down in his failed attempt to remain hidden underneath one of the tanks. Despite the catastrophe, Ken managed to survive and was later sent to a holding camp for medical attention; considering himself fortunate once more. Eventually, he rejoined the 7th Tanks and continued his service. He recalls how people used to call tanks 'metal coffins' due to the number of troops who died inside them but Ken saw differently. Protection was better than no protection and despite the setbacks, he remembers the occasions when German snipers would attack and was thankful to be in a tank. Even among scorched earth, Ken was hardy throughout and embraced his time in the army, describing it as a big adventure. His story captures the bravery demonstrated by those who served in the Royal Tank Regiment as well as the fortunes and misfortunes one faces in a landscape afflicted by war.

In 1942, Jack Webb joined the 70^th young solider battalion Essex regiment, when this disbanded in 1943, he went to the 2^nd 4^th battalion Essex regiment, before finally being press-ganged into the 5^th Berkshire regiment as preparations for the Normandy invasion began. Jack details his involvement in the D-Day invasion; starting with the beach training in Scotland and ending with a firsthand account of landing on Juno beach (Bernieres-Sur-Mer) alongside the 8^th Canadian assault troop. After successfully landing, Jack worked as part of a “dump company”, a regiment tasked with unloading resources to keep troops well supplied. He described the work as valuable, but physically and emotionally demanding. Jack worked at Bernieres until August 1944; he was then transferred to the 5^th Wiltshire Battalion and sent to Vernon, where he was taken as a Prisoner of War and transported to Limburg, he stayed there until he was rescued the following April. Jack considers himself incredibly fortunate to have returned home unscathed “for an unlucky man, I had an awful lot of luck”. Following the war Jack joined the Normandy Veterans Association and has returned to France regularly to visit the graves of his old troop members.

Gus trained as a wireless operator in Kent before joining the 53rd Welsh Division, where he worked on telephone switchboards. His role was vital, ensuring clear lines of communication between Army Generals and his commander. Gus remained with the Division as they prepared for a pivotal moment: boarding a Liberty ship that carried the entire divisional headquarters to the Normandy beaches on 12th June 1944, D-Day plus six. During the Normandy campaign, Gus’s work was crucial—and dangerous. One of his tasks involved working near Hill 112, a strategically important area under constant threat from German artillery. Gus and his team had to locate a signal post under the cover of darkness, as daytime attempts risked being targeted by enemy fire. The danger of the job was brought home when a convoy Gus was travelling with was bombed, tragically killing an officer in the vehicle behind him, Captain Dunbar. At the Divisional Headquarters, Gus worked tirelessly to relay critical signals and updates, helping to coordinate efforts in what became a turning point of the campaign. Gus’s story goes beyond the role of a telephone operator—it’s a testament to resilience, teamwork, and the critical part he played in bringing the war closer to its end.

Bernard Howell joined the Royal Navy at 16 and underwent four weeks of training at Portsmouth barracks. He was then drafted to HMS Faulknor, a battle destroyer, where he participated in several convoys to Iceland, Russia, and the Mediterranean. The ship was later recalled to England and anchored off the Isle of Wight, awaiting further orders. On June 4th, they were directed to Juno Beach, but due to rough weather in the channel, they were recalled several times. Eventually, they were sent back out with the Canadians, with orders to shoot at anything that moved. By lunchtime, they had exhausted their ammunition firing at a small French town and returned to Portsmouth to resupply. After picking up General Montgomery, they headed back to Normandy but ran aground too close to the shore. They were rescued by two American Landing Crafts and remained in constant combat for another three weeks. Bernard, having been prepared by his time in the Russian convoys, faced this combat without fear.

Known fondly as ‘Bunts’ to his friends, after the Naval slang for bunting, David Jefferies had always dreamed of joining the Royal Marine Marching Band. Due to increasing hostilities, he was denied entry in a devastating blow, but didn’t let the news stop him from pursuing a job in the armed forces.  Upon discovering that the Navy was short of signalmen, David decided to concentrate on his knowledge of semaphore and Morse code. He took quickly to life as a signalman and decided to try his luck in the Navy, where he found himself aboard HMS Foudroyant, at the time the oldest warship afloat.  In 1944, as part of D-Day preparations, David joined a crew of 11 and experienced his first journey on board a Landing Craft Tank. Arriving at Gold Beach, Normandy, the role of David’s crew was to provide assistance up and down the coast; despite being a young man at the time, he kept his calm throughout the invasion, even when his craft was hit by an 88, which he considered to be nothing more than a temporary shakeup.  During D-Day, death didn’t occur solely as a result of gunfire. Although David and his crew were lucky, other men were sadly lost amidst the chaos of the operation. 

In May 1943, Cyril Standiford joined the Royal Navy. Aged only 18, he worked as a seaman-gunner on board the control ship HMS Fratton, as preparations for Operation Neptune began to take shape.   On the morning of the 6th June 1944, Cyril and his crew landed at Gold Beach, Normandy, to the overwhelming sight of heavy smoke and the sound of gunfire. In this interview, he recalls the terrifying moment HMS Fratton was hit by a torpedo, causing it to rapidly sink. 31 crew members died, and as a result of the explosion Cyril, who was positioned on one of the ship's gun platforms, was thrown into the water. He awoke hours later in an Army Hospital, having suffered a crush fracture of the spine and two busted knees, which required the long-term use of calipers. After being evacuated back to the UK on board a landing craft, he was moved through various hospitals before eventually finishing in one just outside of Aberdeen, Scotland.  Following the war, Cyril paid regular visits to Ryes Cemetery in France, and was even able to help other families uncover what happened to their loved ones on board HMS Fratton. In this film, he remarks what it was like to ‘cheat death’, and reflects on how young many of the sailors were who lost their lives during D-Day.

Bill Edwardes recounts his experience as a stretcher bearer during D Day after joining the army as an adventure seeking 16 year old that didn’t want to miss out on the action. Despite his age, Bill chose to train to become an infantryman; his mother and army officer both believed him to be mad but he enjoyed every minute of it. Unfortunately, an injury forced him to switch battalions and become a stretch bearer six weeks before D Day, essentially wasting his nine months of training. It was ingrained in the stretcher bearers to be constantly moving between each casualty, causing Bill to begin feeling relieved when a person was dead as no time had to be wasted on them. When he was in between helping casualties and no longer distracted by his job, his fear and doubt would begin to fester but the fact people were relying on him kept him going. Unlike some of the other stretcher bearers, Bill was able to just get on with it, which he credits to his father also being a medic.  Bill felt satisfied with his contribution during D Day so left the army as soon as he was able; he had no regrets but still wanted to check up on some of the people he had helped. He later chose to return to the beaches of Normandy to see how the area had changed and the poignancy he felt being there again left him speechless. Bill had never experienced PTSD until he started doing battlefield tours for work and began to have nightmares about his time serving in the army. 

Eric was born in Reading and after leaving school, worked in a camera factory. The factory was a reserved occupation and subcontracted to the Royal Air Force where Eric undertook precision work making gun cameras for fighter planes. At the weekend he was part of the Caversham home guard and recalls having little free time as a young man. After four years working at the factory, Eric volunteered as a Seaman in the Royal Navy, training at HMS Royal Arthur in Skegness, first as a telegraphist air gunner and then as a wire man. From there he went to the Coastal Forces base HMS Saint Christopher in Fort William Scotland. He was trained on motor launches and torpedo boats and passed a gunnery course. Eric joined HMS Forward Newhaven (Coastal Forces Maintenance Unit 1) for training, camped at the stone frigate HMS Collingwood and then went straight to Gold Beach, an allied area of German occupied France. Once there, he dug trenches in Arromanche Normandy and sea patrolled Mulberry Harbour, temporary piers built by the British. After leaving Normandy Eric went to Italy, mine sweeping with coastal forces. Eric describes his experiences working with important figures such as Admiral Ramsey, Captain Peter Scott and Field Marshal “Monty” Montgomery, the pressures these men were under and their different ways of working. He also reflects on choosing to focus on the good times after returning home.

At 18, Ron volunteered for the navy and joined the 16^th destroyer flotilla on HMS Southdown, a hunt class destroyer L25. Ron began as an ordinary seaman on general duties such as swabbing down the deck, maintaining the weapons, splicing ropes. He recounts a terrifying torpedo attack in the middle of the night which actually turned out to be friendly fire when a British patrol mistook Ron’s ship for a German R-boat laying mines. The Southdown was repaired in time for D-Day where it was their responsibility to lay down a smokescreen. Ron recalls night watches and having to be ready for action in case German aircraft were spotted dropping floating mines. Ron was then involved in blockades at Calais and Ostend preventing German supplies from getting through. Ron reflects that he had a lucky war, he enjoyed the camaraderie with the men and was never really in the thick of serious action.

George Talbot was a young lad when WWII broke out and so had to wait until 1940 to enlist when he was just 18 years old. George recollects how he volunteered for the airborne division and joined the 52^nd Ox and Bucks Regiment where he trained in gliders. It was an intense training regime, including an assault course so tough he says Rambo would have struggled with it, but George believes they were better for it. George recounts how the initial excitement of leaving England for the first time soon dissipated as they flew over the smoking French battlefields. Soon he and his glider were down, battered and broken, but safely in France. What follows is an in-depth, and at times graphic, account of George’s campaigns in Normandy, the Ardennes, the Rhine and onto Palestine including a very close shave with a German tank, the awful effects of a phosphorous bomb and the relentless shelling from the Germans which would have mentally ground them all down was it not for the camaraderie of the men. George shares a valuable account of the day to day experiences of troops on the ground and looks back on the loss of his youth as a sacrifice, but one ultimately worth making.