94-year-old Raymond Iles, a resident at the Red Rose Care Community in Farndon, remembers his part in D-Day on the 80th Anniversary, converting ships before Operation Overlord

As the 80th anniversary of D-Day approaches, we remember the stories of the men and women that made it possible.

One such man was 94-years-old Raymond Iles, a resident at the Red Rose Care Community in Farndon, who was just 14 at the time of the allied invasion of Normandy.

Ray worked as an apprentice carpenter and joiner with the General Steam Navigation Company on the docks in East London, where he helped convert requisitioned fishing trawlers into much needed mine sweepers, hospital ships and support barges, in preparation for D-Day.

He remembered the time fondly, saying: “It was an exciting time for a lad of 14.

“We knew the invasion was coming very soon because they had been preparing for so long.

“The day after there was a completely different feel to the dockyard, it was very quiet.

“It was the biggest armada there ever was, but we lost thousands of men on the beaches during that first wave.”

The reality of life in Britain at the time meant that everyone played their part in the war effort, whether they were fighting overseas or playing a support role at home.

With a cheeky personality, Ray also remembered a few funny stories such as saving the beloved ship yard cat Nelson from being pressganged into the Canadian Navy shortly before the invasion, where Raymond had to sneak aboard a ship and sneak the cat out under his boiler suit.

He also recalled setting off ‘borrowed’ flares in Trafalgar Square on VE Day, and when he was evacuated to Dorset he ‘requisitioned’ apples from the church orchard and handed them out to troops.

Ray’s father also played his part in D-Day, constructing the Mulberry Harbours which were large floating docks towed across the English Channel to help ships unload vital supplies onto the beaches following the invasion.

His mother worked on Bailey Bridges, which could be assembled in the field by soldiers to cross obstacles and rivers.

Although Ray says he wishes he could have done more during the war, his son Mark said he is proud of his father’s role in history.

After the war Ray joined the RAF and over 32 year served in Aden, Germany and the UK, before joining the Territorial Army Volunteer Reserve later in life.