2nd Battalion Royal Berkshire Regiment

Dame Vera Lynn
Soldier who saw ‘angel’ sing

AT FRONT

Roy saw her sing in Burma

ONE of the few surviving soldiers to have watched Vera perform in Burma has told how he has never forgotten what she did for the troops.
...Roy Welland, 96, said it was like having “an angel” lift their spirits in the war zone.
...“I was quite lucky. I got a space almost at the front. I stood there and thought of home instantly,” he says. “I can’t put into words how it made us feel to have her perform, how it boosted morale. And I’ve never forgotten it.”
...Roy, then a 23-year-old with the Royal Berkshire Regiment, fought the Japanese in the battle of Kohima just months before Vera’s visit in September 1944. The veteran, from Colchester, even met her. He said: “She had a great loyalty for the country and is very nice. And she’s a Cockney like me so of course I liked her.”

Donated By: Nick Webster Features Editor On Behalf Of The Daily Mirror

[View Sgt. Roy Wellands File]
[Read The Complete Article Mirror Online]

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Sgt. Roy Welland 5337618
Sgt. Roy Welland 5337618

 

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