LegionLive

Have you had a chance to pay a visit to The Royal British Legion’s Poppy Shop yet? As the end of summer nears (no!), thoughts naturally start turning to October’s Poppy Appeal and the ways we can show our support for the British Armed Forces.

At the RBL’s shop you can find Poppy Appeal-related pins, jewellery and accessories, but that isn’t all. How about a Max Res wristband? Some wartime music? A T-shirt? A poppy-emblazoned umbrella? Whatever you’re after the Poppy Shop is sure to have it, so do please take a look to help the Legion keep supporting ex and current members of the Armed Forces the way they do!

 

Do you fancy knowing a bit more about the role of plants in the war?

 

The November edition of Wild About Plants’ freenewsletter will look at the differences between varieties of poppies, so I’ll be sure to take a look!

 

It will also feature an article on the role of plants in war, including plants collected during the first and Second World War to help the nation. Sounds like an interesting read!

One of my Facebook friends, Darren Heaton, is about to tackle a 10 day charity walk in aid of several military charities, including the Legion.

Despite a spinal injury and heart condition, Darren will attempt the 239 mile route to raise important funds for our Armed Forces.

He will start in his home town, Glossop near Manchester on 14th September and end at Wellington Barracks, London on 23rd September.

Members of the barracks, along with a military band, will be there to congratulate him on completing his journey along with a military band.

Accompanying Darren during this event will be Bertie Bear who is the official Mascot of the Grenadier Guards. Bertie Bear regularly travels around the world in association with raising funds for injured servicemen and has recently returned from Afghanistan.

Darren Heaton said: ‘My son, Chris Heaton, is a serving Grenadier Guard who has recently returned from a tour of duty in Afghanistan. Whilst out there he unfortunately lost comrades during engagements with the Taliban and witnessed injuries to close friends. With such a personal connection, this has led me to attempt this 239-mile journey to raise money for injured British troops, especially the Grenadier Guards who have close links with the four charities I have chosen.

‘As a wheelchair user, the challenge ahead is a little daunting however I am determined to complete the journey to show my determination in supporting the UK soldiers who put their lives at risk everyday to make the world a safer place for us all.’

Please show Darren your support by making a donation through his fundraising page.

The Tank Museum in Bovington, in Dorset, are interviewing a succession of Royal Armoured Corps (RAC) soldiers about their experiences in Afghanistan.

 

The results will form an audio-visual exhibition, Battlegroup Afghanistan – The Armoured Soldier’s Story, planned to open at the museum in April 2011. Some of the experiences these soldiers have been recounting are specifically related to their armoured role; others are general to British Forces fighting the insurgency.

 

The Tank Museum’s curator David Willey comments that soldiers are ‘frustrated by what they see as a pervasive attitude at home - the point of view that all the deaths and injuries have been incurred in vain for some flawed campaign. It’s hurtful when they know themselves that they really do achieve a lot that is unacknowledged in the media.’

 

The Soldiers also talk about the hardships of living and fighting in such hostile terrain. Willey intends Battlegroup Afghanistan to redress the balance by putting across soldiers’ stories in their own words, including emotional returns from operations, the exhilaration and fear their work brings and their hopes for the future in Afghanistan.

 

If you’ve never been to the Museum, don’t be fooled by the name; it does much more than just display the odd tank. In an attempt to ensure that lessons from the past are learnt, it organises battlefield tours for the RAC, the most recent of which was the outing in May to Arras, France, the scene of a crucial tank engagement in 1940.

 

If you’re interested in visiting the museum, or taking part in a battlefield tour, just visit their website http://www.tankmuseum.org/ for more details.

 

The battle of Graveney Marsh, which took place 70 years ago, be commemorated next month as the last battle to be fought on British soil against a foreign enemy. To some, it is also remembered for its very unexpected ending…

 

On September 27, 1940, a Luftwaffe bomber was shot down by two Spitfires after a raid on London. Its four-man crew crash-landed on Graveney Marsh in Kent, not far from the Sportsman Inn, where members of the 1^st Battalion London Irish Rifles were billeted on invasion watch.

 

The British soldiers rushed out to investigate but were pushed back by fire from the German aircraft’s machine guns. When the Germans, two of whom were injured, finally surrendered, the soldiers took them back to the Sportsman Inn, where they very kindly bought the Germans a beer. Talk about making people feel at home!

 

London Irish Rifles Regimental Association will mark the anniversary by unveiling a plaque at the pub where the beer was bought.

 

Among those taking part in the ceremony on September 26^th will be Corporal George Willis, 90, the regiment’s piper, who was in the pub when the prisoners were brought in. Mr Willis, from Greenwich, South-East London, said: ‘We gave the Germans pints of beer in exchange for a few souvenirs. I got a set of enamel Luftwaffe wings’.

 

 

 

Ever wondered how to avoid a Lion attack? Or perhaps wished someone could tell you how exactly to escape a sinking vehicle?

 

Well, thanks to ex-Army hero James Shepherd-Barron, you no longer have to be left wondering. In James’ new ‘ultimate survival guide’, he passes on advice that helped him live to tell the tale of terrifying situations and catastrophes, such as how to survive an avalanche, how to fly a plane when the pilot’s unconscious and – for those of you who get lost at night – how to navigate by the stars.

 

James, a former Army helicopter pilot, decided to publish the handbook, titled ‘Everything that follows is based on recent, real-life experience that has been proven to work’, so that others wouldn’t have to learn the hard way!

Calling all Spitfire fans! Keep September 17^th free in your diaries to witness the Bonham’s auctioning of a replica Supermarine Spitfire for The Royal British Legion during The Goodwood Revival.

 

Built in 2008 by hardworking Legion members from the Ripon Branch, the full sized aluminium replica of a MKVb Supermarine took 10 months and a whopping 11,000 man hours to construct. It represents aircraft number W3850 which was flown by Pilot Officer Atkinson, now Sir Joe Atkinson, over France on 13^th October 1941, where he was able to engage and damage a number of German Messerschmitts in an attempt to protect Blenheim bombers attacking port installations. His hard work and bravery was later awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.

 

The replica weighs in at 1.75 tons and was built using original Supermarine blueprints, although the Royal Legion team had to make a few minor modifications: the wings can be removed for transit, the propeller is made of three separate pieces individually bolted to the nose and it comes with its own custom designed and built trailer.

 

Since its construction, the Spitfire has been used at a variety of Legion branch and regional events, as well as at RAF Leeming events including the base’s 70^th anniversary celebrations.

 

It is estimated to fetch a fantastic £50,000-60,000, which will no doubt be of huge importance to The Royal British Legion.

 

Stuart Gendall, Director of Corporate Communications at The Royal British Legion, said, ‘The replica Spitfire is a wonderful machine. The proceeds from its sale will go towards a very good cause - our wide range of care and support services for Armed Forces personnel, their families and veterans.’

 

For more information on the auction and Goodwood Revival, visit their website: www.bonhams.com/goodwoodrevival

 

Photo courtesy of Yorkshire Post Newspapers

 

 

Sergeant Major Gary Chilton, Sergeant Richie Maddocks and Lance Corporal Ryan Idzi - otherwise known as ‘The Soldiers’ - have raised a whopping £270,000 from album sales to split between three Armed Forces charities.

Their debut album, ‘Coming Home,’ was released in October last year, and you may recall they performed at the Festival of Remembrance in November in front of  the Queen and members of the Royal family.

Last Friday, Russell Thompson (pictured far left), the Legion’s Director of National Events and Fundraising was presented with The Soldiers’ generous donation to the Legion - a cheque for £90,300.

Take a look at the British Forces News piece below to see the cheque presentation, an interview with Russell Thompson, and see The Soldiers talk about why they asked Camp Bastion troops to sing on their next single.

 

A British Soldier, Michael Leather, received a surprise when his call for back-up under enemy fire was answered by his brother Jimmy, who he had not seen for 8 weeks despite both working in the dangerous Helmand Province area of Afghanistan.
 
Moments after Michael’s call, Jimmy arrived leading a squad of reinforcements in a Ridgeback armoured vehicle. He said ‘Fighting for your brother and fighting with your brother, your family’s protective instinct kicks in.’
 
The brothers, from Stretford, Manchester, are both Lance Corporals with the 2nd Battalion The Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment. Let’s wish good luck to these brothers and the rest of the British troops in Afghanistan.

Did you know that there are more than 300 military dogs serving alongside British and US troops in Afghanistan?

These four-legged heroes have saved countless human lives by sniffing out explosives, but sadly some of the casualties are pretty severe.

Take two-year-old labrador, Topsail, for instance. He went into a building ahead of US Marines to check for explosives and left with a shattered skull after being beaten by insurgents with a club.

Luckily he is being taken care of at the world’s only hospital for military animals - The Holland Military Dog Centre in San Antonio, Texas. The £10m centre houses state-of-the-art technology, therapy suits and 40 specialists.

Here’s wishing Topsail and all the other wounded war dogs a quick and painless recovery.