British Veterans have arrived in the English port of Dover to board a ship chartered by the Royal British Legion ahead of commemorations to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day.
Claire Hayhurst
June 2 2019 2:44 PM
British Veterans have arrived in the English port of Dover to board a ship chartered by the Royal British Legion ahead of commemorations to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day.
The ship, MV Boudicca, departs on Sunday evening ahead of a week of events to mark the anniversary of the biggest amphibious invasion in history.
Singer Rod Stewart will perform for the Second World War veterans on the ship before it leaves – serenading them with his 1975 hit Sailing.
The veterans will have the opportunity to visit beaches in Dunkirk on Monday before watching a display by the Royal Navy in Poole Harbour on Tuesday.
They will attend the National Commemorative Event in Portsmouth on Wednesday before travelling to Normandy for events in Bayeux and Arromanches.
The ship returns to Portsmouth on Saturday before concluding its journey in Dover on Sunday.
Veterans and their families were greeted at the port on Sunday afternoon, when they walked past a guard of honour and performances by the Dover Sea Cadet Band.
Jim Docherty, 94, had not spoken of his role as an able seaman with the Royal Navy on D-Day until he was invited on the week-long voyage about five months ago.
“I was on board the HMS Obedient, a destroyer,” Mr Docherty, of Glasgow, said.
“I’ve never been back to Normandy before. I never thought it would happen.
“I might meet some of the people I used to know but I don’t think there are many left.”
Mr Docherty will be accompanied on the trip by his son Joe, 67.
The pair previously visited sites in Belgium in honour of relatives who fought in the First World War.
Joe said: “I only found out he had been on D-Day about five months ago, it was because of this trip.
“I knew he had been on the Russian convoys and that’s what I thought. He said ‘I was at D-Day’.”
Rear Admiral John Roberts, 95, from Whitstable, was serving as a sub lieutenant on D-Day.
“I was in a ringside seat,” he said.
“There were bombers, battle ships – everything was firing at the shore but it was a success and we knew that almost by the end of that day.
