Dunkirk revisited...

The same little ships we knew 60 years ago left the docks again to make their last trip to Dunkirk.

What a sight. I will never forget seeing all those boats in the lovely, warm sunlight, stirring such poignant memories in our minds.

And that's how my own pilgrimage to the beaches of Dunkirk began, accompanied by colleagues John Trealeaven, Bill Reynolds and Harold Ings, secretary of the Southend Dunkirk Veterans Society.

From the first moment we arrived on the continent I was struck by the incredible kindness and hospitality extended to us by the French and Belgian people.

On one occasion children lined the streets and cheered as we processed through, shouting 'Thank you, Anglais'.

This tremendous act of appreciation was not staged, but reflects the deep understanding young people there have about the Second World War.

Older people, whose memories were no doubt as vivid as our own, put their arms around us. This warm reception really enhanced our final tribute to the many soldiers who lost their lives.

I was joined for the ceremonies by my son, Brian, who has never known an experience like Dunkirk, but who decided to represent the Southend branch of the national veterans' association.

We crossed the Channel on a ferry on Friday, June 2, with a night in De Panne, Belgium.

On Sunday we assembled in Jean Bart Square at 10.30am for Prince Charles's inspection of the troops. Waiting in the hot sun was difficult for 80 to 90-year-olds, but we made the effort to mark this important event. We marched off at 12pm to the cheering crowd. This filled many of us with emotion - I know there were tears in my eyes.

But the most poignant moment for me was discovering the graves of two comrades I knew in 1940. They were from the 57th Anti-tank East Surreys. They died when they were just 18.

Facing their gravestones brought all those memories flooding back - and I broke down, overwhelmed, in front of their tombs.

The following day saw another service of memorial and march-past, when we met two other colleagues from Southend, Ron Wilson and Harry Bennett. The wet and cold weather did little to dampen our spirits during the parade. At a gala that evening we learned even more about the hospitable nature of our Belgian hosts. We may not speak the same language, but we somehow managed to share our powerful experiences from 1940.

The ceremonies came to an end with the Last Post at the Menin Gates in Ypres, France, familiar to many of the veterans.

A flypast of British planes caused many of us to duck down, reminding us so vividly of sights and sounds of those war years.

And that signalled the end of four days of wonderful

memories which I shall never forget. I say now as we did then: We Will Remember Them.

(Right) Emotional day - Frank Grove, 81, chairman of the Southend Dunkirk Veterans' Society, re-lived some very vivid memories and admits he broke down when he found the graves of two former comrades

LI> (Left) Last respects - veterans, relatives and friends congregate at the memorial on the jetty at Dunkirk before the remembrance service

(Below right) Flashback - Frank Grove in uniform

Tribute to uncle she never knew

Businesswoman Rita Lilly joined the gathering at Dunkirk to pay tribute to her uncle Frederick Gardiner, who died on the beaches when she was just one.

Mrs Lilly, from Lillys of Leigh furniture store in Leigh Road, said: "This was a moving occasion for veterans' relatives, as well as those actually involved. It was good to see so many people sharing their experiences.

"The final tribute was similar to the one at the cenotaph, which was very fitting."

Mrs Lilly stepped in to help organise a Dunkirk memorial service at St Clement's Church, Leigh, after learning about her uncle from a session on the internet.

She said: "I could find nothing about him.

"I eventually found out he was a soldier, and how he died in 1940, when my son's girlfriend was surfing the internet."

The internet site, which contains details of other Dunkirk veterans, can be found at yard.ccta.gov.uk

Tragic crew of little ship

Five boats from Leigh were among an armada of little ships that sailed to the shores of northern France in one of the most renowned chapters of the last war.

However, one of those fishing boats failed to return.

The Renown LO88 struck a mine, killing all the crew on board.

Their names are enshrined on a memorial in St Clement's Church, Leigh: Frank Osborne, Leslie Osborne, Harry Noakes and Harold Porter.

This was just one of the tragic, yet heroic, stories which members of the Dunkirk Veterans' Association commemorated when they travelled to Dunkirk, France, and De Panne, Belgium, last week.

This was a final pilgrimage - and their last chance to pay tribute to the memories of friends and colleagues before the national association disbands.

The Southend branch will continue until September this year when veterans, many now in their 90s, will close the doors and consign this chapter once more to the history books.

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.