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A veteran interview with

Paul Lewis

Frame grab of a Para veteran being interviewed
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About Paul Lewis

Paul Lewis describes his story from joining the 3 Paras to becoming a veteran, showing determination at every stage of his journey. Though he initially struggled to keep up with his peers, Paul quickly became the most advanced in his company which earned him ‘Best Recruit’ title. Paul’s service and training took him around the UK, from RAF Brize Norton to Northern Ireland, and Dover to Colchester where he resided with the 16 Air Assault Brigade.

Despite signing off after five years of service, Paul signed back on to serve in Iraq. It was there that Paul’s military service would be forced to an end, when during a reconnaissance journey an explosion threw him off his motorbike, leaving him with severe knee injuries.

After battling with his mental health as an injured veteran, Paul recently founded ‘Wheels Ahead’, a marketing business to support other veterans to get back into employment. Paul’s story shows not only bravery, but a true commitment to the forces that extends beyond his service.

Credits

Interviewed by:
Martin Bisiker
Reviewed by:
Gemma Jones

Transcripts:
Please note that transcripts and closed captions in the video player are automatically generated by Vimeo.

Copyright:
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Home | Veterans | Paul Lewis

A veteran interview with

Paul Lewis

Frame grab of a Para veteran being interviewed

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https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/paul-lewis/

Cite this interview:

MLA Style:
Lewis, Paul. A Veteran Interview with Paul Lewis. Interview by Martin Bisiker. Legasee, 8 Feb. 2016 https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/paul-lewis/. Accessed 15 Jul. 2025.
APA Style:
Lewis, P. (2016, February 8). A Veteran Interview with Paul Lewis [Interview by Martin Bisiker]. Legasee. Retrieved July 15, 2025, from https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/paul-lewis/
Chicago Style:
Lewis, Paul. 2016. A Veteran Interview with Paul Lewis. Interview by Martin Bisiker. Legasee, February 8. Accessed July 15, 2025. https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/paul-lewis/
Harvard Style:
Lewis, P. (2016). A Veteran Interview with Paul Lewis. [Interviewed by Martin Bisiker]. Legasee, 8 February. Available at https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/paul-lewis/ (Accessed: 15 July 2025)
Vancouver Style:
Lewis, P. A Veteran Interview with Paul Lewis [Internet]. Interview by M. Bisiker. Legasee; 2016 Feb 8 [cited 2025 Jul 15]. Available from: https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/paul-lewis/
An interview with

Margaret Lee

Margaret served as a hairdresser in the WRAC.

As a child Margaret travelled around the world with her father who was in the Royal Navy, therefore when she settled in England, joined the WRAC as a means of continuing her travels. Margaret joined in 1975, and as the first intake of army recruits after the Guildford bomb, she described the unnerving atmosphere and extreme safety precautions that were at place during her first six weeks of training. Having previously trained as a hairdresser, Margaret continued this trade and was quickly posted to Northern Ireland where she ran her own hairdressers in Aldergrove. She describes the horror of the bombings, shootings and overall violence in Ireland and her experience with PTSD following this posting. When asked to reflect on the WRAC, Margaret states that although she enjoyed the confidence being in the military gave her, she felt resentment towards the manner in which her career was so easily terminated as a result of pregnancy.
Photo Gallery icon 17 Photos
Service:
Interviewed by:
Martin Bisiker
An interview with

Bernadette Dolan

Bernadette 'Bernie' Dolan worked with the Royal Engineers Postal and Courier Services.

Bernie's interview begins with her retelling the story of how she never wanted to join the army, but as she was too short to join the police, she found herself at the army recruitment office instead. She was posted to Mill Hill in London to train with the postal and courier services. Bernie handled classified mail and transported important documents during the height of the Cold War and IRA threats. In 1978 Bernie was posted to Northern Ireland where she was flown with mail to different barracks and sites all over the country. She remembers experiencing an explosion in the barracks, and in that moment realising that no one was safe from the bombings. After Ireland, Bernie returned to Mill Hill, then Dusseldorf where she ran a post office on the Rhine. She was then posted to the Falklands and responsible for organising soldier's mail as it came into the port. On her return home she was promoted to Quartermaster, and later Sergeant Quartermaster in the Royal Artillery Regiment in Warwickshire. It was at this point in her career that she began to feel the WRAC shifting, and was sad to leave in 1994 when the Corps disbanded. Bernie shares her story because she believes it is important to document history and portray what has happened in the past.
Service:
Interviewed by:
Martin Bisiker
An interview with

Alec Hall

Alec Hall served with 181 Field Ambulance (Airborne) as a medical nurse

In 1940, aged 18, Alec Hall was one of the first people to volunteer for 1st Airborne. He was in the Royal Army Medical Corps training at Tidworth Hospital where he learned various medical skills, including delivering a baby. He excelled in sports, playing football and hockey for his unit, and placing 8th in a cross-country run for the British Southern Command. He then trained with gliders and served in an airborne hospital, often being loaned out to other units. Invariably in the thick if the action, he recalls his time in Oran, North Africa, and a trip through the Atlas Mountains. In Italy, attached to the Airborne Light Artillery, he describes intense action from a cemetary. He talks extensively about his role as a medic, the equipment he used, and being part of the first gliders to Arnhem in Operation Market Garden in September 1944.  Based in two hotels which were set up as hospitals, Alec treated wounded soldiers and vividly remembers giving two pints of his own blood to save Reg Curtis, who was operated on in the field. Eventually he was taken POW and sent to Stalag V11-B. Upon the war's end, Alec endured the Long march and stayed briefly at a local woman's house, listening to her recount her husband's shooting. After returning to the UK, Alec underwent medical checks and set a running record—a mile in just over 4 minutes. He revisited Tidworth Hospital before transferring to 102 Company in Dortmund Hospital, Germany. Alec passed away on October 16th, 2023
Photo Gallery icon 1 Photo
Service:
Interviewed by:
Martin Bisiker