12 Regt RA at Blackpool D Day Parade
Rarely, in 18 years service have I been so overwhelmed with volunteers to carry out a formal parade. June 6th 2004 was one of those days… Blackpool was listed among the top 5 places in the UK who were holding a D Day parade. When asked if 9 (Plassey) Bty RA could lead it, a resounding “yes please” was cried. The BC, myself and 33 soldiers set about bulling, pressing, polishing and brushing our kit to ensure we turned out immaculate in order to honour those who lost their lives in the greatest landing of all time.
The weekend was packed with activities ranging from displays on the seafront, a visit to the Lord Mayors parlour, a D Day dance in the Tower Ballroom, live entertainment in the Royal British Legion, a reception with the veterans of D Day in the Winter gardens and a buffet kindly provided by the Blackpool RAA. The soldiers thoroughly enjoyed the whole weekend. It was an absolute pleasure to watch soldiers of 18 and veterans of 80 sitting and swapping stories, oblivious to their surroundings.
Some 4000+ had gathered to pay their respects and the loudest cheers of the day was rightly saved for the veterans as they marched onto the cenotaph. I have done many things in my career, but nothing quite as humbling as having the honour to parade my Battery in front of the D Day veterans. It is a day I will remember for the rest of my life and I am sure that the young soldiers, more importantly, will remember WHY they were there.
The thing I will remember most is having one of the veterans shake my hand and thank me for driving 700 miles to be on the parade, to which I replied I would gladly have walked 7000 miles for the honour of just being there.
WO2 (BSM) Taylor