The Royal British Legion: read the veterans’ stories

In their own words

Ray Smith

Ray Smith, 93, from Northampton, joined the Navy at 17, serving on board HMS Middleton during the Second World War.

His role was escorting Russian convoys and he served during D-Day escorting landing craft to Sword Beach and spending a week shelling German positions on the beach.

On VE Day the HMS Middleton docked in Portsmouth and Ray was given leave to celebrate in London with his comrades.

They headed to Trafalgar Square and celebrated all day. Ray ended VE Day sleeping in the doorway of a shop after meeting up with a group of WRENs.

Ray said: “It was unlike anything I’d ever seen before. VE Day was truly a day of celebration! We docked and learnt of the surrender of Germany when we arrived back into port.

“We were all given leave which was met with exhilaration and relief, we wanted to be out and about celebrating with everyone else.

“We went to London and joined in the celebrations right in the middle of Trafalgar Square, we partied all day long, meeting some lovely WRENs along the way.

“We all ended up sleeping in a shop doorway as there were no hotels available but we didn’t care, it had been the best day ever!”

After VE Day Ray travelled on HMS Middleton to Simonstown in South Africa where the ship was refitted to be sent to the Far East.

Michael Clarke

Michael Clarke, 89, from Bedfordshire was a teenager during the war and was twice evacuated to the countryside.

He watched the Battle of Britain fought out above his head in the skies. He recalls a German plane dropping a land mine and it blowing-out all the windows in the street.

Michael later completed his National Service serving from 1949 to 1951 as a Sapper with the Royal Engineers.

Michael was 14 when he heard the news about VE Day on the radio; everyone on his street was outside celebrating. He joined them outside in his pyjamas.

Michael said: “Like most children I was evacuated from London at the outbreak of war. I went to East Hagbourne, near Didcott for six months.

“Here, I was placed in a small thatched cottage, we had oil lamps but no gas or electricity and the water outside the back door. 

“The second time I was evacuated was during the Blitz. I remember picking up shrapnel and lots of silver foil tape (to deter radar) on the way to school.

“There was an ack-ack gunsite at Sweep’s Nursery, off Oakleigh Road, N20, so not far from us, which opened-up with a frightening noise, way before the sirens sounded.

“We watched the Battle of Britain in the skies above and just couldn’t wait to read the Evening News headlines just to know how many enemy planes had been shot down each day. I used to shiver with fright under the stairs during the air raids, always thinking that the next bomb was going to fall on our house.

“I was at home on VE Day. I heard the news on the radio, everyone on my street was outside celebrating. I went outside in my pyjamas in the evening to see the celebrations in the High Street in Whetstones.

“There were plenty of people out celebrating, singing and dancing, everyone was so happy and joyous. It was really wonderful to witness. We were all so relieved that at long last it was all over.

“I prayed for months and months for the war to end, everything was rationed and we were always hungry.

“It was a great time for rejoicing; the air raids had scared us to death.

“After all the horrors of bombing London, Coventry and many other places and the loss of so many young lives of airmen, sailors, merchantmen and soldiers, ecstatic would be a gross understatement of our joyous feelings.”

Betty Morris

Betty Morris, 95, from Northamptonshire was born in 1925 so was still at school during the outbreak of the Second World War.