The Last Volunteer - A Tribute to Henry Allingham

veteran and the oldest man in the world when he died aged 113. This

tribute was first broadcast the year he died in 2009.

Above the sunlit rooftops of a south coast city, the bells toll for a

remarkable man. Henry Allingham love to this part of the UK and the

people of Brighton were here to show their affection and respect. Heads

turning to watch aircraft from another age marking his service in

the war to end all wars and the dedication of one veteran to the

friends he lost on the battlefields of Europe.

Henry Allingham was the oldest survivor of the great War. To his

family, he was Grandad. Great grandad. Great great grandad. And

great great great grandad. To the rest of us, he was an eyewitness to

history. I first met Henry on his 109th birthday. In the years that

followed, he never lost his enthusiasm for new experiences.

Never allowed frailty to prevent him doing what he saw as his duty. In an

East London playground earlier this year, excited voices welcomed a VIP

to liven up the daily routine. Henry Allingham had returned to visit the

classrooms he last saw over a century ago. The children of

multiple primary were face to face with the oldest man they had ever

seen. We would like to ask you some questions. Our first question is,

what is the secret to growing old is fit as you are? By being good. The

only way to get the best out of this life is all I knew. Being good.

Henry William Roy Allen, young Harry to his family, was born in London on

June the 6th, 1896. Queen Victoria, age 75, became Britain's longest

serving monarch. In a light spanning three centuries, he would witness a

world transformed. Two great wars, becoming a television, computers and

the jet engine. `` the coming of. When I last spoke to him, his speech

was not as clear as it had been and his earliest memories were still

sharp. Around young Henry, London had

entered a new century. A period of rapid change. The sound of horses

would soon disappear. And you drive me all round Regent 's

Park. School in east London was primitive

and poorly funded. Even paper and pencils were a luxury.

One boyhood fascination was rowing. Look how small it is, Henry. The

tiny clubhouse remains, as does one significant entry in the list of

winners. Henry Allingham, second. Mr Darcy won it and you were second.

You were second. The winner was Darcy. In the pairs. You have not

paid your subscription for 93 years. Have you got the money with you? I

pay weekly. Time spent on the river was time spent with new friends and

away from the financial hardships that led the

Across the Channel in Europe, Evans were unfolding that would draw in

millions of young men. Volunteering for what they saw as a great

adventure. Oblivious to the threat of death and injury. I wanted to go

straightaway to the wall. My mother did not want that. I asked my

mother. I saw what I think was a shop. That is for me.

On a misty morning in Bedfordshire, we really liked it Henry with old

friends. `` reunited. The aircraft they read a reminder of

his wartime service. There was no concealing his delight. Give him a

wave, Henry. How is the engine sounding?

I never thought I would see them in the air again. It is a miracle to

me, to see them again. I cannot believe it. Varied his right before

my very eyes. One last opportunity to inspect the fragile technology

that had carried him on patrol over the North Sea.

More than nine decades on, a visit to London's Imperial War Museum with

carers. The man of the day. They helped persuade Henry to share his

wartime memories. They were the gas masks, Henry, that they used to

wear. In September 1917, Henry's squadron

were transferred to the Western front. That is right. They were one

of the first. The war had settled into a bloody stalemate along a line

of trenches stretching from the Belgian coast to the Swiss

frontier. In the skies above, fledgeling pilots dodged the shell

bursts and is garnished with the enemy. `` skirmish to.

I am wondering, what on earth it must have been like in that open

cockpit when you are flying in it? And you were watching for the

Germans all the time with your machine`gun?

The need to salvage spares from downed aircraft often took Henry and

his comrades into harm's way. Already nursing a win from artillery

fire, he recalled one terrifying night spent close to the front line.

Then, on a November morning, it was all over. Along the lines, disbelief

gave way to elation. Henry, you remember the day the war ended?

Amidst the music and the chatter of veterans party, the slaughter of the

First World War might seem a distant nightmare. One guest was a living

reminder but for half a century, he blocked out that period of his

life. Back at the Royal hospital, two more

old soldiers had asked to meet a man who volunteered for service long

before they were born. Veterans of different conflicts

sharing a belief in the futility of war.

The snapshots in Henry's albums represent happier times. He outlived

his wife, Dorothy, and a daughter who had moved overseas as a GI 's

bride but the bonds with his extended family in the US grew

closer as the years passed. Every birthday celebration I joined was

full of love and laughter. Don't you blow out...! She's! Actually, when I

was in kindergarten, my grandmother told me that he was coming over for

the summer. He was telling my friends at the time how

amazing it was that this guy was coming all the way from England and

he was my grandmother's father, which to me was amazing. I remember

thinking it was so neat that I had this great grandfather who was still

in his 90s and rode his bicycle and played golf and went sailing with

us. Just wonderful memories of this very active man. When Henry broke

his silence well past his 100 year, light became a great deal busier.

Around the UK, audiences young and old were spellbound by a precious

opportunity to hear the story spanned three centuries. Tales

of adventure and sacrifice told on behalf of the friends who never

returned home. Good morning, everybody. Where were you based at

the start of the war? They asked where I wanted to go at my first

training and I said I wanted to go to East Africa. He is a lovely man

and he had a great sense of humour, which I was quite surprised at. He

made us all laugh. His memories are amazing, what he can remember about

the war. Of course, he saw all of these events firsthand. It was very

special because he has been through a lot in his life and hearing him

talk about the war is unbelievable because, well, we will never meet

anybody who has been through two world wars in our lifetime. He told

us about a time on a train when he had to tell a woman how her husband

had died. It was so awful because there were so many men and people

who had lost their lives to save their country and their families. I

was actually quite surprised at how young he seemed. I expected him to

be less mobile and less with it than he was because of his age but it

just goes to show that even if you have to live that long, it does not

mean that you have got to have a bad memory. He can still remember all

the horrors and enjoyment he has seen over the past years.

We all owe so much to those men who have given what they did. I pay

homage to those men very much. I cannot help it.

Henry never relished being centrestage but every birthday

brought fresh tributes and a new experience. The services competed to

show their admiration with a memorable party venue. Did a good

job, lads! In this case, a gathering onboard HMS Victory and an encounter

with a famous piece of naval headgear. Henry, do you know whose

hat you have got on? I do not. Nelson's! No! No! And he is turning

over in his grave! We began saying goodbye to him on his 100th birthday

and every year, he is back again. By the time we got to this year's

birthday party, it was becoming obvious that they be this was the

last time. I think we are turning from grieving to celebrating and,

looking back on a wonderful life... Soon after his 112th birthday, on a

windswept and drizzly Blackpool seafront, Henry was still on parade.

What does it mean to have Henry here today? Absolutely fantastic. I

cannot say how much it means. So good to meet a legend. We were

joking about taking some lessons. Absolutely wonderful, he really is.

I feel so privileged to escort him. Well done, so! `` sir!

One, two, three... We are up, Henry! A wonderful old man.

Terrific! I want to shake his hand but I cannot get near him! Go around

the other side, he will shake your hand. Henry, can I shake your hand?

LAUGHTER. Cheers. Good to be with you! Wonderful, wonderful!

Terroristic, that! Yeah! Terrific. Henry Allingham found new purpose in

the twilight of a very long life. When you are gone, what would you

like people to say about Henry Allingham and to remember about

you?