Harry Eddy was born in Devon and joined the Navy in 1943. Following training in Letchworth and Troon, he passed as a wireman and was posted to the LCT-944 (landing craft tank) in readiness for the D-Day landings. Harry describes in detail life aboard his LCT and the responsibilities of his role, recalling the horrors of war and the Navy’s perhaps rather shocking approach to recruits who abandoned their posts during the height of battle. He also remembers how an attempt by his crew to rescue a stricken landing craft from Sword Beach nearly sank his own ship, leaving him lucky to make it back to Britain alive. After the liberation of France, Harry recalls how he and his shipmates headed for Westkapelle, a coastal town in the Netherlands, where the promised and much-relied-upon air support didn’t arrive. In his own words, “It made D-Day look easy.” Harry also shares his memories of VE Day, and joyfully recalls an emotional reunion at a meeting of the LST and Landing Craft Association with his best friend from the war who he hadn’t seen for 40 years.

David comes from a military background, his father and two older brothers served during WWII. He enlisted into the Navy in 1949 for seven years. He recounts a year of arduous basic training, which carried the risk of being “back-squadded” for failing. Although tough, David valued his training and was determined to succeed. Gaining the green beret was the proudest moment of David’s life. He began active duty in Korea, defending Wonson Harbour on Yodo Island in 4-1 commandos. He manned the heavy artillery, working alongside American counterparts to defend the island from enemy incursions. This also involved raids to disable strategic infrastructure. He enjoyed the opportunities for R&R in Japan and spent time there after peace was declared. David returned to the UK, following which he spent 3-month tours of duty in many areas including the Caribbean, often in guard duty roles on-board ship. David recounts happy memories of this time. Finally, David was stationed first in Malta, in charge of weapons stores and then in a similar role in Cyprus during the struggle for independence. It was while on duty that David was suddenly told to leave as his 7 years were up.

Nick joined the Navy as a boy in 1933 and served until wounded in action in 1945. After training he served on HMS Emerald, a coal-burning cruiser. On returning from the East Indies he transferred to HMS Southampton, another light cruiser. On this ship he saw action against the Italian navy in the Mediterranean. He then transferred to service on motor launches, patrolling the North Sea for a brief period before being assigned to a minesweeper, HMS Ardrossan. After time spent mine-sweeping parts of the English Channel and North Sea his flotilla escorted a convoy of merchant ships to the beaches on D-Day. The sea was rough and many of the troops being carried suffered from sea-sickness, as well as being attacked by the Luftwaffe, until protection from the RAF arrived. He found the screeching of the bombs as they dropped particularly distressing and he remembers it to this day. His ship then took part in the bombardment of German defensive positions. He watched the infantry climbing from ships into landing craft which took them to the beaches. Some troops drowned because they left the landing craft too soon, trying to wade ashore in the choppy sea. They were carrying a lot of kit and Nick still recalls the bodies floating by his ship, and this sometimes keeps him awake at night. During this period his ship was at action stations for three weeks, fighting German E-boats and aircraft. Every Armistice Day Nick remembers the details of these tumultuous events.