:00:09. > :00:11.At noon today we raised anchor and we were ready to go.
:00:12. > :00:14.On the deck and in the hold the soldiers were waiting.
:00:15. > :00:19.The assault on the beaches will begin.
:00:20. > :00:22.We are over the enemy curtahn now and the run`in has started.
:00:23. > :00:25.One minute and 30 seconds, red light, green light, get out
:00:26. > :00:36.This is the day and this is the hour.
:00:37. > :00:41.The sky is lightning over the coast of Europe as we go in.
:00:42. > :00:48.The sea crowded, infested with craft of everx kind.
:00:49. > :00:52.On the horizon, flesh upon flesh, from the guns
:00:53. > :01:12.They are being attacked pretty hostily, as you will hear.
:01:13. > :01:47.It is only 70 summers since this area was a battle ground. For many
:01:48. > :01:50.of us it is a moment of his day but for many veterans it was thd
:01:51. > :01:57.defining moment of their lives. Welcome to a special edition live
:01:58. > :02:07.from Normandy. We pay tribute to those who took part in the D`Day
:02:08. > :02:11.invasion 70 years ago. We are here at a German gun placement and it was
:02:12. > :02:12.absolutely crucial that these guns here were designed in the e`rly
:02:13. > :02:18.hours of D`Day. The Merville Battery was arled with
:02:19. > :02:21.four big German guns in thick concrete emplacements.
:02:22. > :02:25.From here they could fire on British and French troops landing on
:02:26. > :02:27.Sword Beach next to Gold and Juno. This was the right`hand sidd
:02:28. > :02:30.of the Allies' invasion zond. The guns had to be taken out
:02:31. > :02:32.the night before the landings or they would cause
:02:33. > :02:44.heavy casualties on the beach. X hundred men from the ninth Italian
:02:45. > :02:53.of The Parachute Regiment on Salisbury Plain were tasked with the
:02:54. > :02:57.mission of flying in in a D`kota, an aeroplane very similar to the one
:02:58. > :03:06.you see behind me, setting off from places like Arias Brize Norton ``
:03:07. > :03:11.RAF. In a sense aeroplanes are a bit
:03:12. > :03:14.like people, some The Dakota
:03:15. > :03:17.does just that. Built largely by women
:03:18. > :03:19.in the factories. It would have been one
:03:20. > :03:22.like this that brought Pilot and co`pilot`pilot navigate
:03:23. > :03:26.a radio operator and back hdre you would have had our 25 paratroopers
:03:27. > :03:30.hooked on and sitting They would have had parachutes on,
:03:31. > :03:36.they would have had their kht bags, their weaponry, very heavy,
:03:37. > :03:40.all squeezed in here, anxiots, I bet not a word was said
:03:41. > :03:47.because they were waiting for one thing, the green light
:03:48. > :03:51.telling them to jump. As one Private recalls, the jump
:03:52. > :03:56.was more luck than judgement. The plane reared up
:03:57. > :04:00.and I was thrown out the door. My head hit the tailplane
:04:01. > :04:04.and it took my helmet off. Hundreds of men found themsdlves
:04:05. > :04:15.scattered across a 20 mile `rea Magazine and grenades and a
:04:16. > :04:18.fighting knife, that is all I had. Luckily within 200 yards we were
:04:19. > :04:22.at the rendezvous, which was amazing considering
:04:23. > :04:37.the green light had not comd on Of the 600 men, hundreds of them
:04:38. > :04:44.drowned in an area you can see just behind me. Because the Germ`ns had
:04:45. > :04:49.flooded that area around thd river. Only 150 men had landed in the right
:04:50. > :04:56.area. The commander had to decide whether to give up or to go on. They
:04:57. > :05:00.continued on, but this was no easy task because across here just beyond
:05:01. > :05:07.those hedges was a massive minefield. They had to cut through
:05:08. > :05:12.barbed wire and five foot thick wire and then they had to face the
:05:13. > :05:23.Germans with machine guns. This footage gives you an idea of what it
:05:24. > :05:34.might have been like on that night. Get in! The four gun emplacdments
:05:35. > :05:40.were heavily guarded, built by the Germans over four years. It was the
:05:41. > :05:43.RAF bombings in the area th`t caused all sorts of problems for the
:05:44. > :05:50.paratroopers. Because of thd bombings the area behind me had huge
:05:51. > :05:57.craters that the paratroopers had to get up and over and up again on the
:05:58. > :06:03.other side. This is where spread remembered `` this man remelbered.
:06:04. > :06:06.When I went in I had a strange feeling of being outside myself
:06:07. > :06:12.Trying to keep their feet up off the minefield.
:06:13. > :06:24.Once we got to the coast, that passed and that was it.
:06:25. > :06:32.As well as the Dakotas, the red three gliders bringing in more men
:06:33. > :06:40.and a lot of the explosives that would be used for the guns. They did
:06:41. > :06:45.not arrive. The paratroopers were at the door. What happened next? I will
:06:46. > :06:50.tell you later. The last few days we have been focusing on the vdterans
:06:51. > :06:55.who have returned your time and time again to be alongside their
:06:56. > :07:04.colleagues again and to remdmber comrades from 70 years ago.
:07:05. > :07:08.70 years ago they came here to the Normandy beaches to fight. This
:07:09. > :07:20.afternoon they came back to remember. I cannot forget. H cannot
:07:21. > :07:25.push it away. Veterans from the south of England joined hundreds of
:07:26. > :07:34.others a around the world at Sword beach to pay tribute to colleagues
:07:35. > :07:37.who were killed. Along with the bigger events, veterans havd
:07:38. > :07:49.attended many smaller ceremonies in the towns and villages they helped
:07:50. > :07:58.in the summer of 1944. It is lovely to see you. Members of one
:07:59. > :08:05.association were in a village on top of a strategically important hill
:08:06. > :08:08.just outside one town. The fighting here was particularly fiercd. One
:08:09. > :08:11.soldier said you could go through a hedgerow and find a group of German
:08:12. > :08:20.soldiers heading in the opposite direction. This man was amongst
:08:21. > :08:25.those who battle to drive ott the Germans. It was tough and wd are
:08:26. > :08:34.thankful we survived. We ard the lucky ones. The heroes are the men
:08:35. > :08:39.who line the cemeteries. Whx was the fighting here so difficult? The
:08:40. > :08:49.Germans were trying to stop us advancing. During the Normandy
:08:50. > :08:53.campaign this man was a 20`xear`old lieutenant who took on some
:08:54. > :09:00.formidable German forces. It was a bit like the and a bit and to hand.
:09:01. > :09:07.I had not done that before. I learned very quickly. Richard was
:09:08. > :09:14.evacuated back to the UK after being injured by shrapnel. The colpany
:09:15. > :09:20.commander said, there is blood coming from your leg, I said no he
:09:21. > :09:26.said yes, get off to the drdssing station, and that was my war over.
:09:27. > :09:36.They have been many moving scenes. Here, children presented thd
:09:37. > :09:42.veterans with flowers. We will come to another cerdmony in
:09:43. > :09:48.a moment. This evening, behhnd me, you can probably see people getting
:09:49. > :09:51.dressed up, and that is bec`use there is a French re`enactmdnt group
:09:52. > :09:56.who are going to pay tributd in a very different way by interpreting
:09:57. > :10:01.what happened here 70 years ago and I know some of the Paras have been
:10:02. > :10:08.here talking to them and guhding them through what happened. It does
:10:09. > :10:12.not matter whether the cerelony is large or small, they are always very
:10:13. > :10:18.moving and very poignant. A few days ago when we came over we were with
:10:19. > :10:21.some of the veterans in thehr 9 s. In some ways it seems you c`nnot do
:10:22. > :10:27.them justice by calling thel veterans. In America they c`ll them
:10:28. > :10:35.the golden generation because of what they achieved. The men who did
:10:36. > :10:38.not give up 70 years ago certainly haven't given up on returning here
:10:39. > :10:46.time and time again for as long as they can. This was a poignant
:10:47. > :10:50.ceremony. The red berries are harder to pick
:10:51. > :11:00.out the crowd never days because the passage of time, but they c`rd here
:11:01. > :11:03.and proud to be here. The rdal heroes are laying here and they
:11:04. > :11:12.should never be forgotten. To see the French people gathered here
:11:13. > :11:20.they love us to bits and we were pounding them with bombs, wd
:11:21. > :11:25.destroyed our farms and yet they love us because we got them liberty.
:11:26. > :11:35.This story patties from one generation to another. `` p`tties. A
:11:36. > :11:39.moment of gratitude as the people of this French community ensurd that
:11:40. > :12:06.the sacrifice of these men will never fade away. It is important to
:12:07. > :12:15.come back, isn't it? I realhsed it time and time again. I am pleased I
:12:16. > :12:19.have come back. Will you return If possible, yes. I would like to keep
:12:20. > :12:24.this up. Our numbers are getting fewer and fewer. If I am able I
:12:25. > :12:35.would like to return until H can no longer do it. They have the most
:12:36. > :12:39.wonderful spirit, even 70 ydars on, they all have amazing storids to
:12:40. > :12:51.tell of what happened. Everx person I meet always very humble. We are
:12:52. > :13:00.here at a museum and the director of the museum is with us. Thank you for
:13:01. > :13:05.letting us be here because H know you have a big event this evening.
:13:06. > :13:10.Over the years, you have met so many of the veterans who come back time
:13:11. > :13:20.and time again. They must fdel like family. Yes. It is family for all of
:13:21. > :13:34.the people and it is my famhly with my heart. We have contact whth the
:13:35. > :13:43.French and British grandsons. It almost goes through the famhly. That
:13:44. > :13:49.Israeli important. `` is re`lly Why are you so passionate about what you
:13:50. > :14:01.have achieved? I was ten ye`rs old when my family, we went to
:14:02. > :14:11.Arromanches to the museum and I visited and afterwards I sahd to my
:14:12. > :14:19.father, I know where I will work. I will work, I have worked here for 25
:14:20. > :14:25.years and every year after ly work with the volunteers... Your father
:14:26. > :14:36.was involved in this. The fhrst time I worked here my father camd here
:14:37. > :14:40.and he said, I worked for the Germans. The Germans forced your
:14:41. > :14:50.father to build part of that. That must have been a strange fedling.
:14:51. > :15:01.Yes. He said, I built your job. Good luck tonight. The weather h`s been
:15:02. > :15:06.fantastic. Thank you. We can return to the story of what
:15:07. > :15:10.happened here 70 years ago. A handful of paratroopers had made it
:15:11. > :15:17.and had to disarm the guns, but what was it like for the Germans inside
:15:18. > :15:22.the bunkers? This is what the paratroopers would
:15:23. > :15:27.not have seen, inside the gtn in the. Four of these. Inside, you have
:15:28. > :15:34.the Germans who are living, sleeping, eating on sentry duty
:15:35. > :15:40.probably around about nine or ten of them and the museum has dephcted
:15:41. > :15:45.life inside including one Gdrman using a Paris court to see what is
:15:46. > :15:51.happening out there it. Thex were surrounded and entombed in this
:15:52. > :15:55.concrete. Over there is the gun Nothing had gone right for the
:15:56. > :16:03.paratroopers up until this point. They had a stroke of luck. These
:16:04. > :16:08.would have been thick steel doors, the hall entrance, this is where the
:16:09. > :16:14.paratroopers had to get in, and the Germans had left them open. All they
:16:15. > :16:21.needed was the explosives, which they had lost. There were pdople
:16:22. > :16:29.outside lien on the ground, Germans and our chaps, when I got there I
:16:30. > :16:37.was told to go in and see if it was clear and I went in and there was
:16:38. > :16:46.movement in one room. It was dark. The Sergeant came along and I gave
:16:47. > :16:54.him the bombs and he said, get out, and I got out, and that was it. They
:16:55. > :16:58.blew the guns but did not m`nage to disable them completely. Thdy had
:16:59. > :17:05.killed so many Germans the guns would not operate fully. Evdn though
:17:06. > :17:11.this mission was a huge success it came at a massive cost, will because
:17:12. > :17:15.of 150 men who attacked herd, half of them were killed and winded. This
:17:16. > :17:27.mission was to save lives on the Normandy beaches `` injured. The
:17:28. > :17:39.next story involves a doubld agent and a little bit of cunning.
:17:40. > :17:45.It was then these humble he`rts that the codebreakers of Bletchldy Park
:17:46. > :17:50.decrypted and sorted messagds. Some of the information gleaned help
:17:51. > :17:53.staff plot the movement of dnemy shipping as well as Allied forces in
:17:54. > :18:03.the English Channel in the run`up to D`Day. It was very exciting. We knew
:18:04. > :18:12.about all of the bits of hardware that were going across. The German
:18:13. > :18:16.boats would have been a gre`t deal of trouble to us. There was a
:18:17. > :18:22.tremendous amount of activity going on. There was so much work that
:18:23. > :18:29.sometimes you could not go warm at the end of your shift. Quitd a lot
:18:30. > :18:34.of pressure. We felt very responsible because we felt that if
:18:35. > :18:39.we did not keep things up`to`date it could mean people being killed.
:18:40. > :18:43.Together those landing on the beaches of Normandy the best
:18:44. > :18:49.possible chance, a decoy D`Day operation had been planned. A double
:18:50. > :18:53.agent was one of a network of spies feeding the Germans both information
:18:54. > :19:00.that the invasion would be `t Calais. We were intercepting the
:19:01. > :19:04.German transmissions and by decrypting them could see whether or
:19:05. > :19:11.not the Germans had swallowdd the bait which we were giving them. They
:19:12. > :19:18.did. The message is behind ts tell us that the elaborate decoy was a
:19:19. > :19:21.success. It allowed British intelligence to monitor what was
:19:22. > :19:25.being said to ensure that the lies that were being fed was being
:19:26. > :19:30.believed. It kept the Germans sitting in Cali right up until
:19:31. > :19:34.August when we actually att`cked them, they were still waiting for
:19:35. > :19:41.the invasion across the sea that never happened. Everybody w`s
:19:42. > :19:49.working flat out to try to dnd the war. We really desperately wanted
:19:50. > :19:52.the end because we had had dnough. Such was the secrecy that even when
:19:53. > :19:58.the end did come, it was another 30 years before they were able to tell
:19:59. > :20:10.that family exactly what thdy bid in the war. `` did.
:20:11. > :20:15.As you travel around this area, there are many cemeteries to visit,
:20:16. > :20:19.many of them `` all of them well kept. We wanted to tell the story of
:20:20. > :20:27.one soldier so we chose a gravestone at random near Gold beach.
:20:28. > :20:34.This story starts with a gr`ve. The inscription tells us that Charles
:20:35. > :20:40.Martin was from Dorset. He died on D`Day, but who was he? Born on
:20:41. > :20:45.Boxing Day 1916 he was one of the Mack children growing up in Dorset.
:20:46. > :20:56.It was a fun time as his yotnger brother recalls. We were behng
:20:57. > :21:03.looked after by our great and. They wonderful people. It was a large
:21:04. > :21:09.estate. My family owned the village. We got up to all sorts of nonsense.
:21:10. > :21:16.We got on very well with people He had girlfriends and so forth. A
:21:17. > :21:19.career in the army beckoned. After training at Sandhurst rejoined the
:21:20. > :21:29.Dorset Regiment at the north`west Frontier. Then came war. In 194 he
:21:30. > :21:37.led the Cicely invasion. In a hazardous red he stormed a German
:21:38. > :21:41.gun possession single`handedly. It was surely the beginning of him
:21:42. > :21:45.winning a reputation for hilself that the fighting soldier. He seemed
:21:46. > :21:49.to know instinctively what ` lot of soldiers take time to learn and that
:21:50. > :21:57.is that in an assault landing you need to keep going. You cannot hang
:21:58. > :22:00.about on the beach. On returning to Britain has talent at the soldier
:22:01. > :22:04.and leader were recognised `nd he was promoted to the Hampshire
:22:05. > :22:08.Regiment as second`in`command of the 1st Battalion appealing for
:22:09. > :22:13.Normandy. His experience was not quite unique but it would h`ve been
:22:14. > :22:17.very rare. He had won Mackex reputation by then for being very
:22:18. > :22:24.swift and brave and effective in action. On the 6th of June the first
:22:25. > :22:32.wave of landing craft carryhng the Regiment arrived here. Little went
:22:33. > :22:34.as planned. RAF bombs overshot their targets and the German defences
:22:35. > :22:40.which should have been cleared were still in place. Wet, cold and
:22:41. > :22:47.seasick, 600 men from the Rdgiment poured onto the beach. Unemployed
:22:48. > :23:00.stands including this one poured relentless fire on the troops `` gun
:23:01. > :23:06.emplacements. The commanding officer was injured. Charles to comland It
:23:07. > :23:10.was not to be. Shortly after stepping from the landing craft onto
:23:11. > :23:20.French soil, he was shot by a sniper and died on the beach. He w`s 2 . I
:23:21. > :23:35.think about him a tremendous amount because I have a very good
:23:36. > :23:40.photograph of him on my desk. Each one of these graves tells its own
:23:41. > :23:45.story of courage and selflessness. This one is about a teenager from
:23:46. > :23:51.Dorset who was swept up in war. Many lost their lives, but their
:23:52. > :24:01.sacrifices secured the peacd and freedom which was so nearly lost.
:24:02. > :24:09.We have almost reached the dnd of the programme. We have a spdcial
:24:10. > :24:15.programme tomorrow. The vetdrans will keep returning to France to
:24:16. > :24:18.remember what happened 70 ydars ago. Memories of friendships forged in
:24:19. > :24:24.the days of war as they stand together again. D`Day was a success
:24:25. > :24:29.but came at a huge cost. Thd families left behind and other men
:24:30. > :24:35.who did not come home. The families have put their own inscripthon. They
:24:36. > :24:38.remain a moving testament to all the men who never returned. We will
:24:39. > :25:39.leave you with some of them tonight. After a lovely day today with blue
:25:40. > :25:42.skies overhead, tomorrow will be very different. Tonight we `re
:25:43. > :25:49.looking at every boundary r`in moving up from France and that could
:25:50. > :25:55.have some hail as well as lhghtning over the course of the day tomorrow.
:25:56. > :26:01.The Met Office have issued ` yellow weather warning. Thunderstorms after
:26:02. > :26:04.a dry start to the night will start drifting up from the south. There
:26:05. > :26:10.could be heavy torrential downpours at times and there will be gusty
:26:11. > :26:17.winds at times. Temperatures staying mild overnight. 15`17 Celsits. A
:26:18. > :26:22.damp start to the day tomorrow for some. The thunderstorms will rattle
:26:23. > :26:25.through during the morning. Clearing during the mid morning and darly
:26:26. > :26:30.afternoon from the south co`st but taking their time to move
:26:31. > :26:36.northwards. We should have drier conditions during the afternoon with
:26:37. > :26:43.sunny spells. Today we reached 3 Celsius, tomorrow will be 20
:26:44. > :26:47.Celsius. Tomorrow night it turns quiet. We may have a shower tomorrow
:26:48. > :26:58.evening but the showers will generally clear and temperatures
:26:59. > :27:03.will fall away. 12`14 Celsits. A mild, mist the start to the day on
:27:04. > :27:07.Sunday and Sunday will be a much better day than Saturday. I pressure
:27:08. > :27:14.in charge until the evening when we will start to see another wdather
:27:15. > :27:19.front which could potentially during Sunday night into Monday morning
:27:20. > :27:23.produce more thunderstorms. As we head through the rest of thd week we
:27:24. > :27:29.have the Met Office warning for tomorrow for thunderstorms hn a few
:27:30. > :27:30.places, the rain could be hdavy and torrential, a much better