0:00:03 > 0:00:06Hello from the Imperial War Museum at Duxford in Cambridgeshire.
0:00:06 > 0:00:09Throughout this Remembrance Week, we are celebrating heroes,
0:00:09 > 0:00:11remembering forgotten veterans
0:00:11 > 0:00:15and paying tribute to the people who fought so hard to win our freedom.
0:00:15 > 0:00:18This is how the people remember.
0:00:23 > 0:00:27All this week, I'm exploring some of the treasures here
0:00:27 > 0:00:31with former Army officer Andy Torbet.
0:00:33 > 0:00:37And celebrities from the worlds of entertainment and broadcasting
0:00:37 > 0:00:41tell us the role their families played during the war.
0:00:45 > 0:00:48On today's programme, forgotten heroes.
0:00:49 > 0:00:51Uncelebrated for so long,
0:00:51 > 0:00:56now the heroes of the Bomber Command are finally recognised.
0:00:56 > 0:00:57It takes you back.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00It makes you realise the sacrificing,
0:01:00 > 0:01:02and the futility of war.
0:01:04 > 0:01:07Duncan Bannatyne, from the Dragons' Den, tells us
0:01:07 > 0:01:11how his father was forced to work on the notorious Death Railway.
0:01:11 > 0:01:17And when veterans come back from war, the new battles some have to face.
0:01:17 > 0:01:21The darkest time of my life, by a long, long stretch.
0:01:34 > 0:01:38Hello from the Imperial War Museum Duxford.
0:01:38 > 0:01:42Today, we're paying tribute to forgotten heroes of conflict.
0:01:42 > 0:01:44After war ended in Europe,
0:01:44 > 0:01:48the battles in the Far East raged on, claiming thousands more lives.
0:01:48 > 0:01:51It is often regarded as the forgotten war,
0:01:51 > 0:01:55overlooked by a home country celebrating Victory in Europe.
0:01:55 > 0:01:58It wasn't until three months after VE Day
0:01:58 > 0:02:01that the war in the Far East finally came to an end,
0:02:01 > 0:02:05halting one of the worst episodes in British military history.
0:02:05 > 0:02:09During that period, tens of thousands of servicemen
0:02:09 > 0:02:12experienced the brutalities of prisoner of war camps.
0:02:12 > 0:02:15Today, we are joined by Duncan Bannatyne,
0:02:15 > 0:02:17whose father was one of those prisoners.
0:02:17 > 0:02:20Duncan, thank you very much for joining us. Hello.
0:02:20 > 0:02:23Now, your dad was in one of the regiments
0:02:23 > 0:02:25that was captured by the Japanese.
0:02:25 > 0:02:28He was, yes. He was captured when the boat he was on going to war
0:02:28 > 0:02:32was actually sunk. He told me that many of his friends drowned.
0:02:32 > 0:02:34He was picked up by a Japanese boat,
0:02:34 > 0:02:37so taken straight to a prisoner of war camp.
0:02:37 > 0:02:39And he only survived because he was such a good swimmer.
0:02:39 > 0:02:42That's right, yeah. And that's the great thing.
0:02:42 > 0:02:44One of the things he did when he came out after the war is,
0:02:44 > 0:02:47he made his mind up he was going to teach all of his children to swim,
0:02:47 > 0:02:48so he taught us all.
0:02:48 > 0:02:51Before we could walk, practically, he taught us all to swim.
0:02:51 > 0:02:53It was great. So I love swimming. I've done the same thing
0:02:53 > 0:02:56with my children and grandchildren, they're all good swimmers.
0:02:56 > 0:02:58How much did he talk about it?
0:02:58 > 0:03:00I mean, he died 30 years ago, didn't he?
0:03:00 > 0:03:02Yeah. Almost 30 years ago.
0:03:02 > 0:03:06He talked about it very little,
0:03:06 > 0:03:10um, but I know that when the war ended,
0:03:10 > 0:03:12he was one of what was called "the living dead" -
0:03:12 > 0:03:14they were like skeletons walking around -
0:03:14 > 0:03:16and he was very lucky to survive.
0:03:16 > 0:03:19But occasionally, when we'd go out and have a drink together,
0:03:19 > 0:03:21he'd talk about something,
0:03:21 > 0:03:24and I remember one day he got a bit animated
0:03:24 > 0:03:27when he told us about the day they'd found a rat
0:03:27 > 0:03:31and managed to catch this rat in the camp,
0:03:31 > 0:03:33to cook it and eat it,
0:03:33 > 0:03:37and he told us extensively how much they'd enjoyed eating it,
0:03:37 > 0:03:39because they were starving.
0:03:39 > 0:03:40They'd had so little food.
0:03:40 > 0:03:43Yeah. But it was such a traumatic period.
0:03:43 > 0:03:47Did he ever talk to you in detail about that, or not?
0:03:47 > 0:03:50Did you ever see for yourself what he'd gone through
0:03:50 > 0:03:51when he spoke about it?
0:03:51 > 0:03:55No. He told me quite often about some of the illnesses
0:03:55 > 0:03:57that some of the people suffered -
0:03:57 > 0:03:59it made you swell up sometimes when you were starving -
0:03:59 > 0:04:03but he never actually went into detail about how he suffered,
0:04:03 > 0:04:06and I think it's normal of prisoners of war to do that.
0:04:06 > 0:04:08It really doesn't bear thinking about.
0:04:08 > 0:04:10We'll talk plenty more about your father later on.
0:04:10 > 0:04:13Now, while the war was being fought in the Far East,
0:04:13 > 0:04:16Bomber Command was fighting in the skies over Europe.
0:04:16 > 0:04:18They faced the deadliest odds.
0:04:18 > 0:04:20It's a staggering figure,
0:04:20 > 0:04:23but more than 55,000 airmen from Bomber Command
0:04:23 > 0:04:25were killed in service.
0:04:25 > 0:04:28During the war, the men of Bomber Command were regarded as heroes
0:04:28 > 0:04:30but, after that, many of them
0:04:30 > 0:04:34felt their contribution to war went largely unrecognised.
0:04:34 > 0:04:36This is one veteran's story.
0:04:39 > 0:04:42We were scared, really scared.
0:04:42 > 0:04:47I used to think, "Gosh, I hope we come back from this.
0:04:47 > 0:04:49"I don't want to die."
0:04:51 > 0:04:55We did a hell of a lot of damage, there's no getting away from it,
0:04:55 > 0:04:57and it haunts you.
0:05:00 > 0:05:04The story of Bomber Command is one of bravery,
0:05:04 > 0:05:06sacrifice and controversy.
0:05:06 > 0:05:10Initially set up as deterrent in 1936,
0:05:10 > 0:05:13the men of Bomber Command went on to fly
0:05:13 > 0:05:18more than 360,000 missions over Europe.
0:05:18 > 0:05:22Almost half of those who signed up were killed during the war.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25It was a job that youngsters in those days
0:05:25 > 0:05:27just had to get down to doing.
0:05:27 > 0:05:31We didn't want the Germans coming over here
0:05:31 > 0:05:33and doing what they did in other countries.
0:05:35 > 0:05:36It was war.
0:05:37 > 0:05:40Frank Tolley was 19 when he joined the RAF,
0:05:40 > 0:05:44spurred on by the sight of his home town of Coventry
0:05:44 > 0:05:48after a devastating air raid by the German air force in 1940.
0:05:48 > 0:05:52Seeing the damage and the smoking that was still...
0:05:52 > 0:05:55the fires that were still going on,
0:05:55 > 0:05:56I thought, "Hell's bells,
0:05:56 > 0:06:01"if this war is going to be won, it's going to be won from the air."
0:06:01 > 0:06:05By the age of 23, Frank had qualified as a bomb-aimer
0:06:05 > 0:06:09and was the oldest of the seven men in his Lancaster crew.
0:06:09 > 0:06:11Now 94, he's returned to Lincolnshire,
0:06:11 > 0:06:15where he was based, to see one of the few remaining Lancasters.
0:06:15 > 0:06:18It's had a few knocks, hasn't it?
0:06:18 > 0:06:21It just makes you first of all wonder,
0:06:21 > 0:06:23"Gosh, has 70 years gone by?"
0:06:23 > 0:06:26It makes you think of the fellas that you flew with
0:06:26 > 0:06:29and wondering just what happened to them.
0:06:29 > 0:06:32We were a good team.
0:06:32 > 0:06:34I was the old man at 23!
0:06:34 > 0:06:36The gunners were only 18.
0:06:36 > 0:06:38Oh, it was a lot of fun.
0:06:38 > 0:06:40We went out when off duty.
0:06:40 > 0:06:44We would go down to a local pub and chat up the girls.
0:06:44 > 0:06:46We were young, you see.
0:06:46 > 0:06:48We lived as well as diced.
0:06:53 > 0:06:57Radio operator's position...
0:06:57 > 0:07:00For the first time since the end of the war,
0:07:00 > 0:07:02Frank is heading back to his bomb-aimer position
0:07:02 > 0:07:04at the front of a Lancaster.
0:07:04 > 0:07:08It was a doddle getting in before, no trouble at all.
0:07:08 > 0:07:10Ohh!
0:07:10 > 0:07:12Frank, you're getting old, boy!
0:07:12 > 0:07:16For takeoff and landing, this would be my position.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19I'd be standing here, waving to the WAAFs down there
0:07:19 > 0:07:21that were seeing us off.
0:07:21 > 0:07:24Every detail of this Lancaster has been restored
0:07:24 > 0:07:28to how it would have been when Frank was last here in the 1940s.
0:07:28 > 0:07:30Oh, it is. It is the same.
0:07:31 > 0:07:35I'd put these down... lights would come on.
0:07:36 > 0:07:41I would be over the bombsight here, and I'd be calling to the pilot,
0:07:41 > 0:07:43"Left, left. Keep it steady now.
0:07:43 > 0:07:46"Target's going downline to the bombsight.
0:07:46 > 0:07:49"Steady. Steady. It's on the cross. Pair switch pressed, bombs all go!"
0:07:51 > 0:07:52And there it is.
0:07:54 > 0:08:00On our first raid, I remember, when I released the bombs,
0:08:00 > 0:08:05I just watched them go down and I was saying to myself,
0:08:05 > 0:08:09"I'm breaking the Sixth Commandment, I'm breaking the Sixth Commandment."
0:08:09 > 0:08:12And suddenly, I heard a voice say,
0:08:12 > 0:08:17"When can we close these damn doors? It's bloody cold up here!"
0:08:17 > 0:08:20That was my first operation.
0:08:20 > 0:08:24Frank flew 22 missions in the Lancaster.
0:08:24 > 0:08:28They were hard raids, some of them. Quite long.
0:08:28 > 0:08:31The raids proved devastating for both sides.
0:08:31 > 0:08:34More men died flying with Bomber Command
0:08:34 > 0:08:37than serve in the entire Royal Air Force today.
0:08:37 > 0:08:4055,000 lives were lost.
0:08:42 > 0:08:46For decades, historians have debated the rights and wrongs
0:08:46 > 0:08:49of dropping thousands of bombs on German cities night after night.
0:08:49 > 0:08:52Many feel the achievements of Bomber Command
0:08:52 > 0:08:55were deliberately overlooked.
0:08:55 > 0:08:58Bomber Command had a dirty name, there's no getting away from it.
0:08:58 > 0:09:02We ought to have had the Air Crew Europe medal, but what's a medal?
0:09:02 > 0:09:05You know? The thing is, I'm here.
0:09:09 > 0:09:12The last time Frank heard these engines starting,
0:09:12 > 0:09:16he was setting off on a mission in 1945.
0:09:16 > 0:09:18It's hoped this plane will soon be able to fly again,
0:09:18 > 0:09:22but for now just taxiing around this wartime airfield
0:09:22 > 0:09:25reignites old memories.
0:09:25 > 0:09:28When the engine started and we started taxiing -
0:09:28 > 0:09:34bumpety-bumpety-bump - after 70 years, it's almost like a dream.
0:09:36 > 0:09:41It was quite a pleasant experience to be getting into a Lanc,
0:09:41 > 0:09:46knowing you were definitely getting out. You weren't being blown out!
0:09:46 > 0:09:51Yes, it's good to see it. It makes you feel young again.
0:10:00 > 0:10:02Well, later in the programme,
0:10:02 > 0:10:05Frank will be given a very special tour of a brand-new memorial
0:10:05 > 0:10:09for all those who served and were killed in Bomber Command.
0:10:09 > 0:10:12Now, Duncan, your dad worked on the Thai-Burma Railway,
0:10:12 > 0:10:16which was notoriously known as the Death Railway. Yeah.
0:10:16 > 0:10:18That must have been a horrendous experience.
0:10:18 > 0:10:22Yeah, it must have been terrible. So many people died there,
0:10:22 > 0:10:25you know, it was just difficult.
0:10:25 > 0:10:27I think surviving was what they did.
0:10:27 > 0:10:29It was the only thing they could do - it was either survive or die.
0:10:29 > 0:10:34Um, the most extensive conversation I had with him
0:10:34 > 0:10:36was after my sister's funeral.
0:10:36 > 0:10:40And he started to tell me about how one of the jobs he had
0:10:40 > 0:10:42in the prisoner of war camp,
0:10:42 > 0:10:44before he became really thin,
0:10:44 > 0:10:46was to put the bodies on the fire.
0:10:46 > 0:10:49They built a fire once a month and they'd burn the bodies.
0:10:49 > 0:10:52It was really upsetting for him to talk about that.
0:10:52 > 0:10:54So I think the reason a lot of prisoners of war don't talk about it
0:10:54 > 0:10:57is because it's so upsetting for them to do so.
0:10:57 > 0:10:59He got moved around a lot, didn't he? He did, yes.
0:10:59 > 0:11:01For some reason he was taken to...
0:11:01 > 0:11:04I think it's called Formosa, taken to Japan,
0:11:04 > 0:11:06taken to a prisoner of war camp there
0:11:06 > 0:11:09and just spent the rest of his war years there.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12I've got a couple of documents I don't think you've seen yet,
0:11:12 > 0:11:14so let's have a look at one of these.
0:11:14 > 0:11:17This is his liberation questionnaire,
0:11:17 > 0:11:19so this is what he filled in on liberation,
0:11:19 > 0:11:21and you can see there...
0:11:21 > 0:11:23I'm sure you can recognise his handwriting.
0:11:23 > 0:11:24It's his own writing, I think.
0:11:24 > 0:11:26Is that your dad's handwriting?
0:11:26 > 0:11:28I would think it is. It's very similar to mine.
0:11:28 > 0:11:31And you can see here... So it lists the camps...
0:11:31 > 0:11:34Kuala Lumpur. ..there, Kuala Lumpur, then Thailand,
0:11:34 > 0:11:36and the dates he was taken there. Yeah.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38The date he was first captured, actually.
0:11:38 > 0:11:4026th February '42. Where he was.
0:11:40 > 0:11:41'42, yeah.
0:11:41 > 0:11:44And then his regiment, as I think you know,
0:11:44 > 0:11:46the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders.
0:11:46 > 0:11:48There's Formosa, and then Japan.
0:11:48 > 0:11:50Manila, Thailand...
0:11:50 > 0:11:53Wow. Three different camp leaders.
0:11:53 > 0:11:56And then we also have this, there you are.
0:11:56 > 0:12:00This is his prisoner of war index card, filled in by the Japanese.
0:12:00 > 0:12:01DUNCAN LAUGHS
0:12:01 > 0:12:04There's his name, William Bannatyne. Yeah.
0:12:04 > 0:12:07Date of birth, which they got wrong to begin with,
0:12:07 > 0:12:11his battalion, um, and then his address and everything.
0:12:11 > 0:12:15And this is really interesting - we had this translated here -
0:12:15 > 0:12:18so his occupation... and he lists as a farmer.
0:12:18 > 0:12:20Did he? That's what it says!
0:12:20 > 0:12:22Was he ever a farmer before the war? Not to my knowledge!
0:12:22 > 0:12:24THEY ALL LAUGH
0:12:24 > 0:12:26Maybe he did that for a reason. Maybe he did.
0:12:26 > 0:12:28Maybe if you said you were a farmer,
0:12:28 > 0:12:30you get out in the fields, or something. Yeah.
0:12:30 > 0:12:33And the address there, is that an address you recognise?
0:12:33 > 0:12:35Yes, Kilbowie Road, Clydebank.
0:12:35 > 0:12:36Absolutely, yeah.
0:12:36 > 0:12:38I think that was the pub.
0:12:38 > 0:12:40THEY LAUGH
0:12:40 > 0:12:43It's amazing, isn't it, to see this documents from the past?
0:12:43 > 0:12:45Yeah. Yeah, it is.
0:12:45 > 0:12:47Yeah, unbelievable.
0:12:47 > 0:12:50Well, thank you for now. We'll talk more about it later on.
0:12:50 > 0:12:51The war in the Far East ended
0:12:51 > 0:12:55when the atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki,
0:12:55 > 0:12:59and this is the 70th anniversary of VJ Day.
0:12:59 > 0:13:02The occasion was marked by a service attended by the Queen,
0:13:02 > 0:13:05and a march past at the Cenotaph in London.
0:13:05 > 0:13:07Many Far East veterans attended the event
0:13:07 > 0:13:12and, as part of the BBC coverage, two of them told their stories.
0:13:15 > 0:13:19The Japanese were just approaching Singapore island.
0:13:19 > 0:13:23I knew then that the situation was hopeless.
0:13:24 > 0:13:28We could never, ever defend Singapore.
0:13:28 > 0:13:30It was inevitable that Singapore
0:13:30 > 0:13:33would fall into the hands of the Japanese,
0:13:33 > 0:13:35and as far as I was concerned,
0:13:35 > 0:13:38this meant that I would become a prisoner of war.
0:13:39 > 0:13:43Well, they advanced towards Singapore City,
0:13:43 > 0:13:47they entered the hospital and killed every patient,
0:13:47 > 0:13:50doctor, nurse, in that hospital.
0:13:51 > 0:13:54If they could do that, they could do anything.
0:13:56 > 0:13:59All the Japanese thought we were cowards in every way
0:13:59 > 0:14:03and if we'd been honourable, we would have fought until we died.
0:14:03 > 0:14:05They didn't know what to do with us,
0:14:05 > 0:14:09but very soon, they realised that we could be useful
0:14:09 > 0:14:12and be formed into what was called working parties,
0:14:12 > 0:14:16to begin with on Singapore island itself,
0:14:16 > 0:14:18and later on, of course, the Death Railway.
0:14:19 > 0:14:23We stopped in dense jungle,
0:14:23 > 0:14:28then we realised we had to go through 30 feet of solid rock...
0:14:28 > 0:14:30by hand.
0:14:31 > 0:14:34My job was always a doctor.
0:14:34 > 0:14:37But the Japanese didn't treat me differently,
0:14:37 > 0:14:40except that I didn't go out on the work parties.
0:14:40 > 0:14:43I went up to an island just south of Singapore
0:14:43 > 0:14:46called, in those days, Blakang Mati.
0:14:46 > 0:14:48We call it Hell Island.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51And we all had starvation beriberi,
0:14:51 > 0:14:55which was nasty and painful and all sorts of things,
0:14:55 > 0:14:58but acute dysentery was the great killer.
0:15:02 > 0:15:04We were just sheer slaves
0:15:04 > 0:15:09and...you'd be beaten up for nothing at all.
0:15:09 > 0:15:12You didn't know what you were being beaten for.
0:15:14 > 0:15:16One of my bashings, it was a nice one,
0:15:16 > 0:15:19because I never felt a thing. They knocked me out.
0:15:19 > 0:15:24When I'd recovered, going back, seeing my fellow officers,
0:15:24 > 0:15:26they said, "We thought we'd lost you, Doctor.
0:15:26 > 0:15:29"When you finally got up from the ground,
0:15:29 > 0:15:30"you were staggering towards your officer
0:15:30 > 0:15:32"with both your hands clenched,
0:15:32 > 0:15:35"as though you were going to hit him with your fist,
0:15:35 > 0:15:37"and the little Japanese private standing by him
0:15:37 > 0:15:39"was just going to bayonet you,
0:15:39 > 0:15:42"and for some reason, the officer stopped him doing it."
0:15:42 > 0:15:44And I said, "That was, as far as I was concerned,
0:15:44 > 0:15:46"the best bashing I've ever had."
0:15:46 > 0:15:50I was determined to beat the Japanese.
0:15:51 > 0:15:56I took great pleasure in getting through one day to the next,
0:15:56 > 0:15:59undoing bolts on the bridge,
0:15:59 > 0:16:05and cutting into the bolt to weaken it, that sort of thing.
0:16:05 > 0:16:10The first bridge over the River Kwai collapsed
0:16:10 > 0:16:14and we, as a camp, got punished for days for that.
0:16:14 > 0:16:16It was sheer hell.
0:16:16 > 0:16:20People often ask me whether I hate the Japanese
0:16:20 > 0:16:24or dislike all these people who treated us so abominably,
0:16:24 > 0:16:28and I say, "No. If I hated them,
0:16:28 > 0:16:31"it doesn't do them any harm at all."
0:16:31 > 0:16:34I will never forgive.
0:16:34 > 0:16:39If I forgive, I'll be...not true to myself.
0:16:44 > 0:16:46Some really harrowing stories there.
0:16:46 > 0:16:48It's amazing, listening to those men.
0:16:48 > 0:16:50I don't know how old they are, but my father would be 100
0:16:50 > 0:16:52if he was still alive,
0:16:52 > 0:16:56and he told us, as well, about just living day by day,
0:16:56 > 0:16:58that gentleman just said it - his way of winning was,
0:16:58 > 0:17:00every day that he woke up and lived another day,
0:17:00 > 0:17:02he'd beaten the Japanese.
0:17:02 > 0:17:03And that's what my father felt.
0:17:03 > 0:17:05He felt that all the time.
0:17:05 > 0:17:08He was in Puda Prison, in Malaya, for some time,
0:17:08 > 0:17:12and we've come across this extraordinary...
0:17:12 > 0:17:16This is a piece of paper but it's actually a piece of toilet roll.
0:17:16 > 0:17:20Uh-huh. And it was typed up by an officer in Puda Prison,
0:17:20 > 0:17:22and you can see -
0:17:22 > 0:17:24I'm not going to get it out because it's the original,
0:17:24 > 0:17:28it's so delicate - and on it are the names...
0:17:28 > 0:17:30because, obviously, so many of these men were missing,
0:17:30 > 0:17:33nobody knew what had happened to them... That's right.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35..so during the retreat down the peninsula,
0:17:35 > 0:17:36what they did here in the prison,
0:17:36 > 0:17:39they gathered the names of all the officers they could,
0:17:39 > 0:17:42the people who had been killed, the people who were injured,
0:17:42 > 0:17:44the people who were being held,
0:17:44 > 0:17:46and this was smuggled out of the prison,
0:17:46 > 0:17:51and if you look here, right there, there is you father. Wow.
0:17:51 > 0:17:52Isn't that incredible?
0:17:52 > 0:17:55But it was typed up by a British officer,
0:17:55 > 0:17:57smuggled out of the prison,
0:17:57 > 0:18:00and they were given instructions on the toilet roll
0:18:00 > 0:18:02that it was to be...
0:18:02 > 0:18:05They took it down to Changi, by somebody who was passing through
0:18:05 > 0:18:08with the Japanese army, smuggled it out,
0:18:08 > 0:18:12and they were told to unroll the toilet roll very carefully
0:18:12 > 0:18:14and at the bottom of it, they found that.
0:18:14 > 0:18:16Amazing, amazing. Isn't that beautiful?
0:18:16 > 0:18:19Isn't it just? Yeah. It's extraordinary.
0:18:19 > 0:18:24The experiences your dad had in the POW camps were terrible.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27Yeah. How did that affect his life back home?
0:18:27 > 0:18:31What I think is absolutely amazing is, what my father told me,
0:18:31 > 0:18:35his way of winning, like, living every day,
0:18:35 > 0:18:37was when he was released,
0:18:37 > 0:18:40he was determined he was going to get fit again,
0:18:40 > 0:18:42put weight back on,
0:18:42 > 0:18:46meet a woman, get married, get a job, have a family,
0:18:46 > 0:18:50and four years after liberation, I was born, the second child,
0:18:50 > 0:18:53so he'd done all that in four years -
0:18:53 > 0:18:56met my mother, married her, my sister was born and then me.
0:18:56 > 0:18:58They had a house and a job.
0:18:58 > 0:19:00He worked at the Singer sewing machine factory,
0:19:00 > 0:19:04big factory in Clydebank, and he worked there until his retirement.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07Do you wish that you had been able to talk to your father more about it?
0:19:07 > 0:19:10Yeah, I'd love to talk to him now about it.
0:19:10 > 0:19:12It'd be fantastic. I wish I had done, yeah.
0:19:12 > 0:19:14Well, thank you so much for sharing
0:19:14 > 0:19:16your memories of your father with us today. Thank you.
0:19:16 > 0:19:18Later on today's programme,
0:19:18 > 0:19:22we hear how one veteran is battling against the odds
0:19:22 > 0:19:24to honour fallen comrades.
0:19:26 > 0:19:29To lay that wreath on that special day
0:19:29 > 0:19:32will be up there with the greatest achievements
0:19:32 > 0:19:34that I've done in my life.
0:19:34 > 0:19:36I go behind closed doors
0:19:36 > 0:19:40to have a peek at some of the exhibits in the museum's storeroom.
0:19:43 > 0:19:46And on their 200th anniversary,
0:19:46 > 0:19:51we hear the pipes and drums of the 2nd Battalion, Royal Gurkha Rifles.
0:19:56 > 0:19:59Since we've been here, I've been struck by the range of people
0:19:59 > 0:20:02who visit this museum. Many are here to see the planes,
0:20:02 > 0:20:05but others come for very personal reasons.
0:20:05 > 0:20:08Here are just a few of the people we bumped into today.
0:20:13 > 0:20:15I think it's important to support museums like this,
0:20:15 > 0:20:18they're an important part of our history and our heritage.
0:20:18 > 0:20:20I always feel very emotional thinking about...
0:20:20 > 0:20:23there were servicemen up there in these tiny planes,
0:20:23 > 0:20:24defending our country.
0:20:24 > 0:20:26It makes me feel quite emotional, cos it must have been scary.
0:20:30 > 0:20:33Every time I've gone down the motorway, I look at Duxford
0:20:33 > 0:20:35and think, "I must go there,"
0:20:35 > 0:20:38and it's took me all these years.
0:20:38 > 0:20:40My brother's been before but I haven't.
0:20:44 > 0:20:47It brings back lots of memories of aircraft that I saw
0:20:47 > 0:20:52and was interested in during my youth, really.
0:21:00 > 0:21:03It's my birthday and it's a treat from the wife.
0:21:03 > 0:21:06And I didn't know I was coming!
0:21:06 > 0:21:09Probably the one that stuck in my mind was the Memphis Belle,
0:21:09 > 0:21:12purely because I liked the film,
0:21:12 > 0:21:16and the last time I saw that was at an airshow near us.
0:21:20 > 0:21:23It's just a fantastic place to be. Some of the planes,
0:21:23 > 0:21:26you wouldn't even believe how big they are
0:21:26 > 0:21:28until you actually stand at the side of them.
0:21:28 > 0:21:31You've seen them for years on films, or whatever,
0:21:31 > 0:21:34but as soon as you stand at the side of it,
0:21:34 > 0:21:36it's just unbelievable how big they are.
0:21:42 > 0:21:45I've been allowed access to an area that's normally off limits
0:21:45 > 0:21:47to the public. This is the storeroom,
0:21:47 > 0:21:50which is quite a mundane name for an area that houses
0:21:50 > 0:21:53thousands of very interesting artefacts,
0:21:53 > 0:21:55and they're not normally on display,
0:21:55 > 0:21:58but I'm here with curator Martin Boswell,
0:21:58 > 0:22:01and he's going to allow us a sneaky peek behind the scenes.
0:22:01 > 0:22:02Martin, thank you very much.
0:22:02 > 0:22:06Now, some of the artefacts and objects in here are fascinating,
0:22:06 > 0:22:08so why aren't they on display in the museum?
0:22:08 > 0:22:13A national museum is duty-bound to look after its treasures.
0:22:13 > 0:22:17For example, I look after over 15,000 uniforms,
0:22:17 > 0:22:21and when you envisage that exhibitions are,
0:22:21 > 0:22:23generally speaking, thematic,
0:22:23 > 0:22:26we can't show everything all in one time,
0:22:26 > 0:22:29so for the future benefit of generations to come,
0:22:29 > 0:22:31we need to preserve what we have,
0:22:31 > 0:22:34so we have to have a professional environment
0:22:34 > 0:22:36with lighting levels and humidity control,
0:22:36 > 0:22:38such as what we've got here.
0:22:38 > 0:22:42And you've some prize examples here? Oh, absolutely.
0:22:42 > 0:22:45When you consider, certainly in the uniform collection,
0:22:45 > 0:22:49we can put it in two categories, either generic -
0:22:49 > 0:22:53in other words, objects that are worn by unknown people -
0:22:53 > 0:22:57or, significantly, items that have a known history.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00I see you've got some examples for us here.
0:23:00 > 0:23:03This is an example of a generic item in the collection.
0:23:03 > 0:23:06It's a very nice example of an ornate cavalry helmet
0:23:06 > 0:23:09worn by Kaiser Wilhelm's bodyguard unit
0:23:09 > 0:23:11before the First World War and, in fact, during.
0:23:11 > 0:23:13Now, marvellous as it is,
0:23:13 > 0:23:16not terribly practical for front-line service,
0:23:16 > 0:23:20and when they went over to Poland and into Russia on active service,
0:23:20 > 0:23:24they got rid of the eagle, put a spike on it instead,
0:23:24 > 0:23:27and the only concession to being on horseback on the battlefield
0:23:27 > 0:23:30was to wear a cloth cover over the top.
0:23:30 > 0:23:33Now, this is one of those objects in the category of uniqueness
0:23:33 > 0:23:35because we have a known history.
0:23:35 > 0:23:38This belonged to none other than Reich Marshal Hermann Goering,
0:23:38 > 0:23:41the number two of the Third Reich.
0:23:41 > 0:23:43One of the most colourful characters
0:23:43 > 0:23:45but also one of the most vainest.
0:23:45 > 0:23:48He had well over half a dozen different uniforms
0:23:48 > 0:23:52designed to his taste, and this is just one example.
0:23:52 > 0:23:55And something completely different down here. Absolutely.
0:23:55 > 0:23:57At the other side of the pendulum,
0:23:57 > 0:24:00we've got the number two of the Third Reich,
0:24:00 > 0:24:02we've got one of the victims.
0:24:02 > 0:24:06And as you can see, plainly, it's a concentration camp inmate's jacket.
0:24:06 > 0:24:08The red triangle says he's a political prisoner,
0:24:08 > 0:24:10the "F" - he was a Frenchman.
0:24:10 > 0:24:14We know that this was worn by a chap by the name of Rene Dubois.
0:24:14 > 0:24:16Did he survive the camp?
0:24:16 > 0:24:17Yes, indeed he did,
0:24:17 > 0:24:21and on liberation, he walked out of the camp that he was at,
0:24:21 > 0:24:23got all the way back to France
0:24:23 > 0:24:26until he could change into civilian clothes once more.
0:24:26 > 0:24:29But he maintained this at home all those years as a dark souvenir.
0:24:29 > 0:24:31There's a certain natural justice
0:24:31 > 0:24:34in the fact that the man that wore this jacket survived the war...
0:24:34 > 0:24:35Very much so.
0:24:35 > 0:24:39..whereas the man that wore this jacket, and rightly so, did not.
0:24:39 > 0:24:40Indeed. Absolutely.
0:24:40 > 0:24:44And looking round, even I recognise some of the objects you've got here.
0:24:44 > 0:24:48For example, the kit on the manikin looks familiar. Indeed, yeah.
0:24:48 > 0:24:50This came to the museum 2011.
0:24:50 > 0:24:54It was worn by a man who was out in Afghanistan in 2010,
0:24:54 > 0:24:58and it exemplifies that fact that, despite us being formed in 1917,
0:24:58 > 0:25:01and we've collected all the way through the great conflicts
0:25:01 > 0:25:02of the last century,
0:25:02 > 0:25:04we're still collecting up to present day.
0:25:04 > 0:25:07Well, Martin, thank you very much for allowing us access
0:25:07 > 0:25:09and showing us round what you've got back here.
0:25:09 > 0:25:11Enormous pleasure. Thank you very much.
0:25:23 > 0:25:26During the 13-year conflict in Afghanistan,
0:25:26 > 0:25:29the insurgents' weapon of choice was the IED,
0:25:29 > 0:25:32the Improvised Explosive Device.
0:25:32 > 0:25:35This Husky vehicle was hit by one and, as you can see,
0:25:35 > 0:25:36was badly damaged,
0:25:36 > 0:25:39but, thankfully, no-one in it was injured.
0:25:39 > 0:25:41But, of course, many, many were
0:25:41 > 0:25:44and for wounded servicemen and women,
0:25:44 > 0:25:46their injuries can be life changing.
0:25:46 > 0:25:48Here's Rick Clement's story.
0:25:48 > 0:25:53Six years ago, Rick Clement was a newly promoted infantry sergeant
0:25:53 > 0:25:56in the Duke of Lancaster Regiment.
0:25:56 > 0:26:00I really felt that I'd achieved something, to reach the senior rank,
0:26:00 > 0:26:03and to have the responsibility of people's lives
0:26:03 > 0:26:05when you're deploying on operations -
0:26:05 > 0:26:09it's as big a kind of privilege that you can be given.
0:26:10 > 0:26:14Rick's first test of this responsibility was in Afghanistan,
0:26:14 > 0:26:19and during his training, the dangers ahead weighed on his mind.
0:26:19 > 0:26:23There was a lot concentrated on amputations and severe wounds,
0:26:23 > 0:26:27and how to treat them, so straightaway, through that,
0:26:27 > 0:26:30you got a very good idea that the chances are
0:26:30 > 0:26:32you might be doing that for real.
0:26:32 > 0:26:35I suppose you can't think that it will happen to you
0:26:35 > 0:26:37or you wouldn't want to go anywhere.
0:26:38 > 0:26:40In April 2010,
0:26:40 > 0:26:42Rick's platoon was sent to southern Afghanistan.
0:26:42 > 0:26:47Seven weeks in, he was leading his team on a routine patrol.
0:26:47 > 0:26:50Always conscious of hidden Taliban bombs,
0:26:50 > 0:26:52he had to decide their best route.
0:26:53 > 0:26:56We only needed to go 10 to 15 metres along this path.
0:26:56 > 0:26:59It was still pretty close to our base,
0:26:59 > 0:27:01so I felt it would be all right
0:27:01 > 0:27:05to go that way, really, and that was my decision on the day.
0:27:05 > 0:27:08The two men ahead had checked the path for bombs,
0:27:08 > 0:27:10but Rick put one foot wrong
0:27:10 > 0:27:13and triggered a hidden explosive device.
0:27:13 > 0:27:15EXPLOSION
0:27:15 > 0:27:19The only way I can describe it, how it was to me at the time,
0:27:19 > 0:27:21was it was like a "puff",
0:27:21 > 0:27:24and obviously it wasn't, it was a massive explosion,
0:27:24 > 0:27:30but that's how it sounded to me, and then everything went just dark.
0:27:31 > 0:27:34Rick's injuries were life threatening
0:27:34 > 0:27:36and he was flown to the UK for treatment.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39He'd lost both his legs and was in a coma.
0:27:39 > 0:27:41After three weeks, he woke up
0:27:41 > 0:27:44to face the full extent of his injuries.
0:27:44 > 0:27:47He was told he might be wheelchair bound for life.
0:27:47 > 0:27:52I just felt, like, how was I going to deal with it all?
0:27:52 > 0:27:57Was the rest of me life going to be rubbish,
0:27:57 > 0:28:02where I've got to be looked after by somebody 24 hours a day?
0:28:02 > 0:28:06And, to me, that isn't much of a life, you know.
0:28:06 > 0:28:08It was just...
0:28:10 > 0:28:16..trying to...trying to give yourself a reason, I guess,
0:28:16 > 0:28:20to carry on, I suppose, and want to carry on.
0:28:20 > 0:28:24The darkest time of my life, by a long, long stretch.
0:28:26 > 0:28:28While Rick was at his lowest ebb,
0:28:28 > 0:28:31one of his best friends was killed in Afghanistan.
0:28:31 > 0:28:34This made him rethink his own situation.
0:28:34 > 0:28:37I was just devastated. It broke my heart,
0:28:37 > 0:28:40and it made me realise that I need to appreciate the fact
0:28:40 > 0:28:43that I am still there with my family.
0:28:43 > 0:28:45The painful months of rehabilitation
0:28:45 > 0:28:48started to take their toll on Rick's marriage.
0:28:48 > 0:28:51Over the next year, we grew further and further apart,
0:28:51 > 0:28:55and it just became clear, really, that we weren't right for each other
0:28:55 > 0:28:58and we had to make the decision
0:28:58 > 0:29:01where we were going to go our separate ways.
0:29:05 > 0:29:08Rick had to adjust to life on his own,
0:29:08 > 0:29:12and in a wheelchair, even simple tasks like laundry were a struggle.
0:29:12 > 0:29:15Back in the early days, I was dropping things quite a lot,
0:29:15 > 0:29:17just cos of my grip, really,
0:29:17 > 0:29:19and I wasn't able to reach the floor,
0:29:19 > 0:29:22and it's very frustrating, obviously,
0:29:22 > 0:29:24when you need to get someone to pick them up.
0:29:24 > 0:29:26One of the things that I did start to use,
0:29:26 > 0:29:28litter-pickers use on the streets,
0:29:28 > 0:29:30and it's just got the grabber at the end.
0:29:30 > 0:29:34Now, I don't really need it for picking things up off the floor.
0:29:34 > 0:29:36You can see, even with the washing bag,
0:29:36 > 0:29:38I'm pretty much reaching down to the floor now,
0:29:38 > 0:29:41and the strength in this arm allows me to do that.
0:29:41 > 0:29:44It's not really much more of a difficult task
0:29:44 > 0:29:47than for anybody else now.
0:29:47 > 0:29:49Domestic god!
0:29:54 > 0:29:59Despite adapting incredibly well, Rick would love to walk again.
0:30:00 > 0:30:04Today, he's at a rehabilitation centre in Preston
0:30:04 > 0:30:08to practise on a robotic leg which could change his life.
0:30:10 > 0:30:13To walk again is an immense thing, if it can happen.
0:30:13 > 0:30:16Doing things like looking someone in the eye, stood at a bar,
0:30:16 > 0:30:18or whatever it might be
0:30:18 > 0:30:20would be something really life changing.
0:30:22 > 0:30:24OK? OK. Yeah. Do you want to have a walk?
0:30:35 > 0:30:38It's taken Rick over six months of gruelling training
0:30:38 > 0:30:40to get to this level of walking.
0:30:40 > 0:30:43As you can see, I'm starting to sweat quite a bit.
0:30:43 > 0:30:49It is hard work, but feels pretty good, to be honest.
0:30:49 > 0:30:52Rick also has a strong personal motivation
0:30:52 > 0:30:54to get out of that wheelchair.
0:30:54 > 0:30:57He wants to walk unaided to lay a wreath at the Cenotaph
0:30:57 > 0:31:00in remembrance of his fallen comrades.
0:31:00 > 0:31:02This is number-one goal.
0:31:02 > 0:31:07I think that kind of says how big it is to me. I want to walk,
0:31:07 > 0:31:09but I want to do it for those guys,
0:31:09 > 0:31:13and to lay that wreath on that special day
0:31:13 > 0:31:16will be up there with the greatest achievements
0:31:16 > 0:31:18that I've done in my life.
0:31:20 > 0:31:23And we wish Rick all the best of luck with his goal
0:31:23 > 0:31:26of walking to the Cenotaph to pay his respects.
0:31:26 > 0:31:30We're joined now by Jan Bras, who was also a prisoner of war
0:31:30 > 0:31:34and he worked on the Death Railway, just like Duncan's father.
0:31:34 > 0:31:37Jan, what was it like being a prisoner of war in the Far East?
0:31:37 > 0:31:43In the beginning, we stayed a long time in Thailand, in Bang Pong,
0:31:43 > 0:31:45which is near the River Kwai,
0:31:45 > 0:31:49but we were treated quite reasonably.
0:31:49 > 0:31:53We had good food and the work was not heavy.
0:31:53 > 0:31:56It was after that that the trouble started,
0:31:56 > 0:31:59when they started building the railway.
0:31:59 > 0:32:02And when the railway was complete, you were moved on
0:32:02 > 0:32:04to other work, weren't you?
0:32:04 > 0:32:06We moved to Japan
0:32:06 > 0:32:10because they had other work for us in the coal mines in Japan.
0:32:10 > 0:32:12I tell you a story.
0:32:12 > 0:32:15I was beaten in Japan because I didn't salute the guard,
0:32:15 > 0:32:17which was my fault.
0:32:17 > 0:32:19You had to leave the barracks,
0:32:19 > 0:32:22and if you left the barrack, you had to shout "kere"
0:32:22 > 0:32:23and bow to the guard,
0:32:23 > 0:32:27so that they knew there was somebody in the camp loose.
0:32:27 > 0:32:31And I did not shout "kere",
0:32:31 > 0:32:35because I was carrying two buckets of hot water.
0:32:35 > 0:32:39I was beaten up there as I was never beaten up in my life before.
0:32:39 > 0:32:43It was much worse, in my estimation, than the railway
0:32:43 > 0:32:47because the railway meant that you were still in the open air,
0:32:47 > 0:32:51you could see the sky, you could feel the wind.
0:32:51 > 0:32:57In the mine, it was dark and it was very gloomy
0:32:57 > 0:33:00and the work was very dangerous.
0:33:00 > 0:33:02I lost my best friend there.
0:33:02 > 0:33:04The roof fell down on him.
0:33:04 > 0:33:06And how did you get to Japan?
0:33:06 > 0:33:08By ship.
0:33:08 > 0:33:13We were put in the deeps... deeps of the hull
0:33:13 > 0:33:15and we were terrified
0:33:15 > 0:33:22because the Americans were very often torpedoing ships that they saw
0:33:22 > 0:33:24and they didn't bother...
0:33:24 > 0:33:28whether they really did not know that we were on board, or not.
0:33:28 > 0:33:30And this is what happened to your father, isn't it?
0:33:30 > 0:33:32Because his ship was hit.
0:33:32 > 0:33:36That's right. He was on upper deck when his ship was hit
0:33:36 > 0:33:37and he survived.
0:33:37 > 0:33:39Do you feel that you can forgive
0:33:39 > 0:33:41the Japanese for the way you were treated?
0:33:41 > 0:33:46Well, I still hate the Japanese... really, really bad.
0:33:46 > 0:33:50Really? Yeah. A lot of people have gone back to Japan
0:33:50 > 0:33:52to sort of be friendly,
0:33:52 > 0:33:54to befriend them,
0:33:54 > 0:33:57and I have never felt that urgency.
0:33:57 > 0:34:01Those experiences in the mines and on the railways,
0:34:01 > 0:34:03under these brutal regimes,
0:34:03 > 0:34:06it must change how you look at life.
0:34:06 > 0:34:12Yes. It was a strange thing. When I was still at the railway,
0:34:12 > 0:34:15I was very religious,
0:34:15 > 0:34:18I had a book, a religious book,
0:34:18 > 0:34:22and I looked at it and I really felt religious.
0:34:22 > 0:34:26But I have long since departed from that.
0:34:26 > 0:34:28Incredible, hearing your stories.
0:34:28 > 0:34:30Does it shed light, Duncan, for you,
0:34:30 > 0:34:33any more on the sort of thing your father must have...
0:34:33 > 0:34:35Yes, it does a bit.
0:34:35 > 0:34:37I remember my father telling me about the salute,
0:34:37 > 0:34:40and friends he had who were beaten quite extensively
0:34:40 > 0:34:42because they didn't salute, or refused to salute.
0:34:42 > 0:34:44We could not. Yeah. That's right.
0:34:44 > 0:34:47Jan, thank you so much for coming to talk to us.
0:34:47 > 0:34:49I mean, such harrowing stories,
0:34:49 > 0:34:52but incredible to hear them from you,
0:34:52 > 0:34:55and thank you for coming as well to meet Duncan and talk to him.
0:34:55 > 0:34:59Thank you. Now, earlier, we heard from a veteran
0:34:59 > 0:35:02who wants to make sure the achievements of Bomber Command
0:35:02 > 0:35:05aren't forgotten, so we took him to see
0:35:05 > 0:35:07the new memorial to Bomber Command in Lincolnshire,
0:35:07 > 0:35:08which is taking shape.
0:35:11 > 0:35:1594-year-old Frank Tolley had one of the most dangerous wartime roles.
0:35:15 > 0:35:19As part of Bomber Command, the risks were huge,
0:35:19 > 0:35:21and fatalities were common.
0:35:22 > 0:35:25But many Bomber Boys like Frank have always felt
0:35:25 > 0:35:28that their sacrifices weren't fully recognised.
0:35:29 > 0:35:32Today, Frank's been invited to see how work is progressing
0:35:32 > 0:35:37on an ambitious project to honour all those in Bomber Command.
0:35:38 > 0:35:40102 feet, eh?
0:35:40 > 0:35:44This huge spire is the centrepiece of an ?8 million memorial.
0:35:44 > 0:35:48It's the same height as the Lancaster's wingspan
0:35:48 > 0:35:51and, eventually, these panels surrounding the spire
0:35:51 > 0:35:54will display the names of every person
0:35:54 > 0:35:57who died serving in Bomber Command.
0:35:57 > 0:35:59It makes you think of...
0:36:00 > 0:36:02HE EXHALES DEEPLY
0:36:04 > 0:36:07..all of the names that would have gone on there...
0:36:12 > 0:36:14It had to be, but why?
0:36:22 > 0:36:24I'm...I'm sorry.
0:36:34 > 0:36:38"Ainsworth, Ainsworth, Ainsworth, Ainsworth."
0:36:38 > 0:36:40There's a number of Allens too.
0:36:40 > 0:36:42It takes you back.
0:36:42 > 0:36:44It makes you realise the sacrificing,
0:36:44 > 0:36:47and the futility of war.
0:36:47 > 0:36:50There should be other ways of settling disputes
0:36:50 > 0:36:56and to be for each other, not against each other.
0:36:56 > 0:36:58The spire has been built to frame
0:36:58 > 0:37:01Lincolnshire's biggest landmark - Lincoln Cathedral.
0:37:01 > 0:37:04For the bomber crews leaving on missions,
0:37:04 > 0:37:07it was often their last glimpse of home.
0:37:07 > 0:37:11You'd hope, as you passed over, or nearby there,
0:37:11 > 0:37:16that you would see it a few hours later on when you returned.
0:37:17 > 0:37:18This is the plan of the site,
0:37:18 > 0:37:23and we're standing about here on this plan. Yes.
0:37:23 > 0:37:27The memorial has been designed by Stephen Palmer.
0:37:27 > 0:37:30Every part of the site reflects aspects of Bomber Command
0:37:30 > 0:37:33and the people who served in it.
0:37:33 > 0:37:36Will they be on both sides of the panel? They will.
0:37:36 > 0:37:38Exactly. Yes, that's right, they will.
0:37:38 > 0:37:41All the guys I've met have been fascinating.
0:37:41 > 0:37:43They always have clear memories,
0:37:43 > 0:37:47they have a very relaxed attitude to it,
0:37:47 > 0:37:50and they downplay how important it was and how hard it was.
0:37:50 > 0:37:53They're always very matter of fact and down to earth.
0:37:53 > 0:37:55And it's just a long overdue, er,
0:37:55 > 0:37:58commemoration of their effort, really.
0:37:58 > 0:38:03The first phase will include the names of 26,500 men
0:38:03 > 0:38:08who lost their lives serving from the Lincolnshire bomber stations.
0:38:08 > 0:38:10By the end of the project,
0:38:10 > 0:38:14they hope to have engraved all 55,000 names into these walls.
0:38:16 > 0:38:18Just down the road from the memorial,
0:38:18 > 0:38:21this machine is running around the clock,
0:38:21 > 0:38:25laser-cutting thousands of names, and behind every one,
0:38:25 > 0:38:27there's a story of bravery.
0:38:27 > 0:38:30It takes six hours per plate, which, understandably,
0:38:30 > 0:38:33is quite a long period of time to be engineering anything.
0:38:33 > 0:38:36It's really, really good to see somebody
0:38:36 > 0:38:39who was actually involved in the whole thing.
0:38:39 > 0:38:41I could see his face when the names were being cut.
0:38:41 > 0:38:44He looked really in awe.
0:38:44 > 0:38:46Yeah, we're all so proud to be involved.
0:38:48 > 0:38:51Back at the site, the work continues.
0:38:52 > 0:38:55As well as the spire and memorial gardens,
0:38:55 > 0:38:58the International Bomber Command Centre will house a classroom,
0:38:58 > 0:39:00library and museum,
0:39:00 > 0:39:05telling the remarkable story of airmanship, courage and sacrifice.
0:39:05 > 0:39:08The two towers across there,
0:39:08 > 0:39:10and this up here,
0:39:10 > 0:39:14it'll be here for other generations
0:39:14 > 0:39:18to be reminded of the futility of war.
0:39:21 > 0:39:25And that memorial will be open to the public in 2017.
0:39:25 > 0:39:28Well, that's nearly it for us today,
0:39:28 > 0:39:31but before we go, we've been joined by some of the pipes and drums
0:39:31 > 0:39:34from the 2nd Battalion, Royal Gurkha Rifles.
0:39:34 > 0:39:37Now, 2015 has been a very special year for you, hasn't it?
0:39:37 > 0:39:41Yes, Andy, of course. It's a very special year for us,
0:39:41 > 0:39:45because we have done 200 years of service to the Crown,
0:39:45 > 0:39:50and it's so proud, because we have that healthy and wealthy history
0:39:50 > 0:39:52that our forefathers made,
0:39:52 > 0:39:56and it is so proud to celebrate that 200 years during 2015.
0:39:56 > 0:39:59And you are Colonel Brigade of Gurkhas.
0:39:59 > 0:40:02The Gurkhas are very much in your blood, aren't they?
0:40:02 > 0:40:03They are. I was born in Nepal,
0:40:03 > 0:40:06my father and brother both served in the Gurkhas
0:40:06 > 0:40:10and I think that reflects, very much as the Captain was saying,
0:40:10 > 0:40:12that this very much a family organisation
0:40:12 > 0:40:17and it's not uncommon for sons and uncles and grandfathers
0:40:17 > 0:40:20and whole families to be part of the brigade.
0:40:20 > 0:40:22Now, tell us what you're going to be playing today.
0:40:22 > 0:40:25We're going to be playing Mist Covered Mountains.
0:40:25 > 0:40:28It was written in 1856 by Highlander John Cameron,
0:40:28 > 0:40:32and it very much reflects the relationship that we've developed
0:40:32 > 0:40:35with Scottish regiments over many years of campaigning.
0:40:35 > 0:40:36Well, we'll let them take it away.
0:40:39 > 0:40:42MUSIC: Mist Covered Mountains by John Cameron
0:42:19 > 0:42:23The pipes and drums of the 2nd Battalion, Royal Gurkha Rifles.
0:42:23 > 0:42:25Well, that's it for today's programme.
0:42:25 > 0:42:26Duncan, thank you so much for coming in
0:42:26 > 0:42:29and telling us about your father. You're very welcome.
0:42:29 > 0:42:31Coming up on tomorrow's programme...
0:42:31 > 0:42:34broadcaster Angela Rippon tells us
0:42:34 > 0:42:37about her father's service in the Royal Marines.
0:42:37 > 0:42:40I'll be finding out about one of the most expensive items
0:42:40 > 0:42:42here at the museum.
0:42:44 > 0:42:48And we hear from the family of Lance Corporal Jamie Webb
0:42:48 > 0:42:53as they attend the unveiling of a memorial to the fallen.
0:42:53 > 0:42:57It means a lot, and it means a lot for the soldiers as well... Yeah.
0:42:57 > 0:42:59..because of their friends, comrades.
0:42:59 > 0:43:03They were together through thick and thin over there.
0:43:04 > 0:43:08From all of us here at the Imperial War Museum in Duxford, goodbye.
0:43:08 > 0:43:10Goodbye. Goodbye.