D-Day: 80th anniversary marked around Yorkshire

Services of remembrance have taken place around Yorkshire to mark the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings.

Wreath-laying ceremonies were held at war memorials across the region, including in Leeds, York, Sheffield, Bradford, Barnsley and Ripon.

Beacons were due to be lit at 21:15 BST to coincide with the five being lit along the beaches of Normandy.

Beacon locations in North Yorkshire included Ripon Cathedral and along the coastline in Scarborough and Robin Hood's Bay.

D-Day was the largest military seaborne operation ever attempted, and marked the start of the campaign to liberate Nazi-occupied north-west Europe.

It involved the simultaneous landing of tens of thousands of troops on five separate beaches in Normandy.

In York, the Royal British Legion arranged a gathering at the city's railway station.

Readings and prayers were said at the Normandy Veterans Memorial Bench on platform three, with attendees including former soldiers, sailors and aircrew.

In east Leeds, stories and memories were shared from the day of the landings - 6 June 1944.

One of those who attended the Burmantofts Community Friends gathering was Rita Green, who was 11 years old on D-Day.

"I was young but I still remember every detail," she said.

"My grandma died at the beginning of the war and my auntie took me to her house," she recalled.

"I can remember we were stood crying at the window, listening to the German planes going over and watching the searchlights - it was terrifying."

She continued: "I remember the fear, just hearing an aeroplane, even to this day I can get uptight.

"Now, I find it very emotional."

Council buildings were also being illuminated in red, white and blue, including in Leeds and Bradford.

Wreaths were laid at the war memorial in Victoria Gardens in Leeds, with the service led by lord mayor Abigail Marshall Katung.

• Live: 80th anniversary of D-Day

At Bradford Cenotaph, lord mayor Bev Mullaney and Reverend Duncan Milwain from Bradford Cathedral joined representatives from the Royal British Legion.

Ms Mullaney said she was “immensely proud” to represent Bradford on the anniversary of D-Day.

“It is with great gratitude that they gave up their lives for the freedom we have today,” she said.

Attendee Gary Bentley, 64, an ex-serviceman in the Royal Marines, said: “I’m here to represent all the nation and all of my family.

“My son was a Royal Marine and was injured in Afghanistan in 2010 with a gunshot wound to the head, he survived, thankfully."

He added: “We need to keep telling the next generation what people have gone through, what the nation has gone through, over the years.”

Meriel Briscoe, also at the service, said her father, Gerry, landed on D-Day and stayed in northern France and Belgium to help with the liberation of Europe.

When asked why it was important to remember the date, an emotional Ms Briscoe, 68, said: “Because it’s so sad.”

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