John Leishman Story of a Lifetime

John Leishman was one of many who served during the Second World War.

Now he's going back to the beaches of Normandy to revisit and to remember.

Some of those memories are painful.

It just burst into flames. Just a ball of fire.

How that pilot suffered. I'll never forget it.

John's own story is one of war and romance,

but this journey is also about remembering those who never had the chance to see their nineties.

Your eyes are filling up with tears.

Well...

these men were probably full of bullets.

What a difference from tears to bullets.

To celebrate her Diamond Jubilee, the Queen came to visit

and thousands wanted to see her.

# We want the Queen! We want the Queen! #

They lined the streets and the big ticket in town was an invitation to a party at Stormont.

Loads of people phoned the radio show, angry that they couldn't go,

and there was one caller who brought the programme to a standstill.

'Let's speak to John. You're almost 93? Is that right?

-'I'm an ex-serviceman.

-Did you get a ticket?

-No.

'And I was at the Battle of El Alamein against Rommel in 1942.

'And I landed on Sword Beach on D-Day.

'I'm almost 93 and I'd love to go back to Normandy

'to pay my respects to the heroes that never came back.'

John Leishman, who served King and country, couldn't get a ticket.

But the First Minister was listening and John got to meet the monarch.

I remember you...

He was even able to tell the Queen that she'd changed the spark plugs on his car

when the young Princess Elizabeth served in the Women's Auxiliary Territorial Service.

-You had dungarees on you.

-I could have done.

God bless you.

'It was clear that John was a hidden gem of a character in Northern Ireland

'and I wanted to unearth his decades of stories for myself.'

-Hello, John!

-Good morning, Mr Nolan.

-Good to see you.

-And you, sir.

-You're a lively man!

-I'm fit as a fiddle!

-I can't get down any more.

-I can get down. One, two, three.

-You're actually touching your toes!

-Yes.

-Let me get this right.

There's as far as I can get and I'm 38! Look. I can't get any further.

Aye.

There are proud pictures all around John's living room.

He was stationed in Northern Ireland in 1940 and when he met his wife, Florence,

it was to become his home.

But shortly after they were married, John was sent off to serve in France, Africa, Egypt and elsewhere.

-This is you, look. A young man.

-A young man.

-20 years of age. Where's the date? 1940.

-Yeah.

-'He might have left Northern Ireland, but all thoughts were of home.'

-You got Forces Favourites

coming through on the radio. And you listened with the earphone on to hear what was going on.

And...it brought back memories

of the mainland,

and then it brought back memories of Florence.

"I wonder what she's doing tonight."

Vera Lynn used to sign off with her Family Favourites or Forces Favourites.

She used to sign off with Goodnight Sweetheart.

I would lie in the desert there thinking of Florence.

And I would say, "This is it. Florence, this is for you."

And I would sing...

-#

-Goodnight, sweetheart

-#

-I'll see you in the morning...

-#

# Goodnight, sweetheart

# Goodnight. #

The German bombers used to come over at night. They dropped these big flares

and the whole desert lit up as if it was daylight.

And then the bombs would start to drop and you were lying in wee sand holes

hoping that none of them would come your direction.

And you were thinking of the wife,

just praying that this raid would go over

and you would live for another day.

That's at Pegasus Bridge.

And that's the first cafe that was liberated due to the D-Day landings.

And the paratroopers just landed below that cafe

on the left-hand side of the canal.

In 1944, John was involved in the invasion of Normandy.

The first of the D-Day forces landed on the beaches of Northern France on the 6th of June.

Hundreds of thousands of troops soon followed, including John's regiment.

-That's Sword Beach.

-Where's your wife? Where's your wife?

-She's coming... There she's there.

-Oh, I see.

It doesn't last for long.

-She was walking across towards my camera.

-In the green?

-That's my wife in the green.

-It was only for a second or two.

-But what a lovely thing to have on film forever.

-Yes.

'Over the decades, he's been back with his family and other former soldiers to France,

'but I wanted to go with him so that I could understand for myself

'why Normandy is just so important to John.'

# Goodnight, sweetheart

# Goodnight. #

-He's asking if you have any knives or guns in your bag.

-No!

No, no.

I laid my guns down in 1945 when the war was over.

'There's no doubting John's excitement about returning to France,

'but in the airport there are moments of reflection, a chance to think about what happened

'just a plane ride away.

'But then the singing starts again.'

-#

-Don't forget to wake me in the morning

-#

-And bring me up a nice, hot cup of tea Gawd, blimey

-#

-Kiss me goodnight, Sergeant Major

-#

-Sergeant Major be a mother to me!

-#

-Well done.

-APPLAUSE

'Even in his 90s, this is a man who doesn't need to wait for in-flight entertainment.'

# Kiss me goodnight, Sergeant Major

# Tuck me in my little wooden bed

# We all love you, Sergeant Major... #

You'll end up as fat as me!

# Don't forget to wake me in the morning

# And bring me round a nice, hot cup of tea

# Kiss me goodnight, Sergeant Major

# Sergeant Major be a mother to me! #

'After the plane journey, it's another couple of hours before we reach Normandy,

'but John isn't ready to stop.'

-It's a wonderful adventure, for me anyway.

-Good.

-'There's so much he wants to show me.'

-We were all friends together.

Wonderful.

-Where do you think you get your energy from, John?

-I don't know. I just keep going.

'All along the way, there are reminders of war

'and tributes to those who served. Often it cost them their lives.

'This is a place where people come to remember and to honour.

'Every veteran is held in high regard.'

I come back here to pay my respects to the heroes that never came back.

I'm not a hero.

I was very lucky to get back.

-OK.

-And I come here to pay my respects.

That's also the reason why I'm over here. For respects.

Without you, now we'd be talking German.

Yes. Oh, yes.

-"Sprechen sie Deutsch, monsieur?" No way!

-No way!

'In 1944, troops arrived by air and sea

'with the aim of capturing this coastline and liberating France.

'John wasn't part of the first wave that made it onto these beaches,

'but many who were died on these shores.'

-Back then, 70-odd years ago, you had a gun. Now you have a stick.

-Yeah.

We came up with a 303 rifle.

And we just came up the beaches like this.

To protect ourselves.

And today the sun's shining on us, I have a stick.

Everything is calm and peaceful.

And back in 1944 it was just hell on the beaches.

-Absolutely hell on the beaches.

-And there would have been some of your friends dropping down here

-shot dead.

-Yeah. Oh, yeah.

It wasn't a...

It wasn't a happy sight when you looked along the beach. It wasn't a happy sight.

'Looking at them today, it's difficult to imagine that these beaches were once battlegrounds.

'That's why many feel it's history that still needs to be taught today.'

All Germans weren't bad.

German soldiers were only doing a job like we were doing.

The only problem was the Germans had the Nazis,

Hitler and Himmler and a few others.

Are you happy to see us... to play in the beach, really happy?

-Eh?

-He said are you happy to see this generation playing on the beach?

It makes me proud to come down here today to see these people enjoying themselves.

Back in 1944, it was just hell on Earth.

-Arromanches.

-Arromanches. Ah, oui.

The 6th of June, 1944.

-Yes.

-I went Normandy, France, Belgium, Holland...

John's been wearing those medals everywhere he goes.

I now understand why he takes such pride in them. They invigorate him.

Look, he's laughing. That's a Tunisian Jew he's talking to now

who fought in the war as well. The cap John is wearing, he got that handed to him in 1939

when he joined the Forces. There's so many memories to share here that he wants to share

not just with the generation similar to him, but with a younger generation as well.

It's really, really easy to forget with his enthusiasm... They're singing now. This man is 92.

# Mademoiselle from Armentieres

# Inky pinky parlez vous Mademoiselle from Armentieres. #

'With so many people to meet and places to see,

'it's back on the road. And John has a place he wants to take me

'and a very special woman he wants me to meet.'

It should have been along here. I don't think it's as far up.

That's the cafe there.

'Securing Pegasus Bridge was the first step towards liberation

'and the cafe here has become a symbol of that fight.'

-Parachute jump!

-Wahey!

Rip cord! All right, right. Let me get that stick there.

It says up there. I see the sign.

The first house in France to be liberated.

The gliders...

They landed over there.

Just where those trees are.

And then we took that bridge.

And we secured that bridge.

So that meant that we had control of this road

and we could supply ammunition and move the troops around.

'John has brought me to see Madame Arlette who owns the cafe.

'And it's a really special moment.'

Madame, bonjour.

-Lovely to be here.

-Lovely having you here.

'Spitfires launched from British bases and fought for the domination of the air over the desolate beach.'

'In the battle against occupation, this coastline was all-important.

'And the Cafe Gondree was the first house to be liberated.

'The daughter of the couple who owned it during the war still runs it today.

'As a child, she saw injured soldiers treated inside the cafe.'

Imagine it as a little field hospita where they would bring them in.

The cries, the smell.

Our house became theirs.

The kitchen, and it's the same furniture, that's where they laid on their stretchers

and straight into our dining room where they would operate on them.

I'm on a journey with John. I said to him he can go anywhere in the world, where would he like to go?

And he wanted to come here.

This is very moving for me because they have known me since a little girl.

To them, I'm still a little girl, although I'm a grandmother.

And to have them back, knowing what they've gone through,

risking their lives to bring us the freedom,

and to live to such a grand age,

it's absolutely...

..extraordinary.

How would you describe people like John?

I think they're an example to the whole world.

-Ah!

-Oh, madame, thank you.

-Thank you very much.

-Calvados?

-Thank you.

-Thank you, madame.

-What can you tell us about John? We've heard a lot from him about you.

What can you tell us about him?

You've got to realise, and I've always said it,

that he wasn't just the first man who arrived on that evening of the 5th.

The continuity, and he was part of it,

were equally as important, if not more,

because the Germans were re-taking..

And if they had re-taken the village

they were automatically finding us French and we would have been lined up and shot

or taken to concentration camps.

'Veterans travel here from all over the world

'and at the cafe, wearing his medals,

'John is something of an attraction himself.

'Part of the ritual of coming here is signing the visitors' book.'

I can't see too well.

You've got a whole page here, so just write on the whole page.

That's very good.

Very good. That's excellent.

Thank you, madame. I hope you can read it.

I can read it. Without glasses too.

'It's been a long and tiring day,

'but John still feels he needs to pay tribute to those

'who never had the chance to leave France.'

SEAGULLS CRY

'The next day, we head back to the beach.

'In the towns and villages along this coast,

'they've gone to huge efforts to ensure people remember,

'but every soldier has things they'd like to forget.'

I have nightmares of a Spitfire coming down on the main road above the beach.

Do me a favour, John.

Will you close your eyes and just talk me through what your real nightmares are about the war?

SOUND OF AIRCRAFT ENGINES

I can see that Spitfire trying to make a landing

on the main road which was just off the beach.

It was a Tarmac road.

It was nice and smooth.

And the Spitfire, it was smoking and smoking at the tail.

And then it started to catch fire.

And when he tried to land on the road,

as soon as he touched the Tarmac road,

it just burst into flames.

It was just a ball of fire.

I'll never forget it.

It must have been a terrible death.

And I see that now and again, sometimes when I'm sleeping.

And it frightens the life out of you at times.

'And so many died on both sides.'

John, I have never been in a place like this in my life before, ever.

Well, you're missing something.

It's not a nice place to be,

but you think of all the people that's lying here gave their lives up.

-Do you know what strikes me straight away?

-Yeah?

"20 years of age. 21."

I know, this is it, yeah.

-"18 years of age."

-Oh, yeah.

All young ones.

-All young ones.

-21.

-Yeah.

-22.

-Yeah.

-There's another 18-year-old, RG Knight. Parachute Regiment.

-Yeah.

-The 20th of August. That was my birthday.

-Yeah.

-1944. He's 18 years of age.

-Yeah.

Here's someone here, "believed to be buried", so they don't know where he is.

And here's someone, he's lost his name.

"A soldier of the war."

Lost his name because he fought for the rest of us.

And John, you know, this character that has taken me on a journey,

the first war cemetery I've ever been in

and the first time in my life that it, honestly, has really hit me.

These people, we don't know if they're here, we don't know their name.

There's a 16-year-old over here.

16 years of age.

I'm thinking of all the life that I've experienced since 16 and he didn't get a chance to,

which makes it even more remarkable that we've got a 92-year-old

to hold on to a lot of those memories and teach us so much

that I've never even taken the time to understand.

Your eyes are filling up with tears.

Well...

these men were probably full of bullets.

What a difference from tears to bullets!

I'm sorry, Stephen. I'm sorry.

HE SOBS

It could have been me. As you say, Stephen, it could have been me.

Did something just hit you there a few minutes ago?

It did indeed. It did indeed.

-It did.

-You're feeling guilty that you're still alive?

I do indeed.

Why was I picked?

Why did I get home safe?

Some of these men never got a chance.

I can just imagine how heartbreaking it must be

for the mums and the dads

of these really young men.

Oh, yes. And don't forget the sweethearts.

The mums and the dads.

I bet the sweethearts would be grieving for the young men that never came back.

And the children of some of the men.

Their children must have terrible thoughts

of where their dad is

in a foreign country,

buried here.

And that could so easily have been Florence.

It could have been Florence.

But I thank the Lord, the man above, that I was able to come back

and put my arms around Florence

which was a wonderful day for me.

'The damage and hurt caused by war is obvious

'and even all these decades on, still raw for some.

'But the pride in victory is just as clear.

'Before we leave Normandy, John has several things he still wants me to see,

'from the statue of Field Marshal Montgomery who commanded the Allied troops in France,

'a personal hero of John's,

'to the Highlander, a tribute to the 51st Highland Division which John was part of.'

Same hat as mine.

'It's the first time he's ever had a chance to see this statue.'

"On the 10th of June, 1944,

-"the Highland Division..." Your division.

-Yeah.

"..made its first attack from this position."

I never even knew this was here.

'There's no doubting how special Normandy is to John.

'But there is a place even more important

'and we have to travel back to Northern Ireland to find it.

'It was here in the village of Moira that John was married more than 70 years ago.'

Is the church the same as it was back then?

The church is the same as it was back then, yeah.

It's the same church.

'Florence and John tied the knot during the war,

'but despite all the dangers, he returned safe and well.'

She was a wonderful wife.

It's a wee bit difficult coming up here,

but I'll get over it

because I'm thinking of all the happy times we had together.

'After almost seven decades of marriage,

'Florence was buried by the church where they wed.'

What happens to your heart, John, when she's taken away from you?

Well, the heart just nearly stopped altogether.

I was just devastated.

But those things have to come to us some day.

It breaks your heart.

It breaks your heart not to talk to her after all those years, but...

I've got to be strong, I've got to be strong.

I've got to get a grip of myself and say, "She's only there temporary."

And we're going to be together again.

That's how I look at it.

-I'll leave you here for a few minutes.

-Yeah.

# Let's say goodbye with a smile, dear

# Just for a while, dear

# We must part... #

Yes, Florence, I do miss you a lot.

I do miss you a lot.

But there's a happy day coming and that's something to look forward to.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd