At only 17, George Batts, MBE, Leg d’Hon enlisted for military service, hoping like many others his age that it would make him a hero. From an ex-schoolboy in the Sussex countryside to a Corporal in the Royal Engineers, life for George changed dramatically when he volunteered himself for special duties, where he was trained on fitness, booby traps, and how to dismantle mines. Although he enjoyed the physical intensity of his training, George soon experienced the first hand 'organised chaos' of Normandy, after landing at Gold Beach in total darkness on board a Landing Ship Infantry. He recalls the terrible storm, the sound of gunfire, and later the sight of ambulances treating the long queues of wounded servicemen.  In this interview, George proudly describes his work on the Mulberry Harbours, before moving to a more front-line role in Belgium. On VE Day, while others celebrated, George knew he would soon be bound for India, to assist the continuing war effort in the Far East. Thirty two days later he arrived in Bombay, and afterwards sailed to Malaya, though was interrupted by the detonation of the atomic bombs in Japan before his arrival. Like many other veterans, here George describes himself as “one of the lucky ones”, and shares his hope for the future. Following the war, George was eventually made National Secretary of the Normandy Veterans Association, and served as an integral part of Legasee's Normandy project, ensuring that similar stories will never be forgotten. 

Roy was sent to Korea in 1952 while doing his National Service and was shocked by the conditions in Korea which were worse than London after the blitz. He served as a signalman during the Imjin River battles. In their front line positions they were infested with rats and their hot food froze after a few minutes. He felt that the British soldiers were treated poorly compared to their allies. Their infantry weapons were old fashioned, food and clothing were worse and the pay was far less. He feared the enemy mortar bombs and watching the US air force dropping napalm was dreadful. However most of the time during the war was boring. A friend of his died after coming out of an Allied military prison where he was severely beaten. This event still affects Roy and he has tried to get redress for his comrade but to no avail.

Marjorie Inkster was inspired to become a FANY and later work on anti-aircraft radar when her parent’s house was bombed early in the war. Because she was only 19 and had insufficient driving experience, she spent a year on petrol counting, which prompted her to volunteer for radar training. After 9 months’ training, she initially worked on radar research then found herself in charge of a REME detachment of men looking after the radar for 5 gun sites in north London. She provides many interesting and inspiring recollections: dealing with an incendiary that hit her lodgings; the extent of the technical training; the competition to service the radar on a dredger because they got navy chocolate; avoiding a bomb as they drove to fix a radar; sending secret components for repair by normal post. In London, she was incentivised to ensure the Identification Friend or Foe worked correctly because her brother was a night fighter pilot. Secrecy meant their work was never discussed, including the fact that her sister spent the war at Bletchley Park.