Taunton teacher who guided troops to beaches on D-Day dies

A World War Two veteran who helped guide troops onto the beach during the D-Day landings has died at the age of 101.

Jim Booth was part of a top-secret team of submariners who slipped into the water off Normandy to scout the area.

In civilian life, Mr Booth - from Taunton in Somerset - went on to lead a successful teaching career.

A former Lord Lieutenant of Somerset said the veteran "brought colour to the lives of people around him".

Mr Booth joined the Navy at the age of 18 and later spoke to BBC Radio Somerset in 2019 about his experience at the D-Day landings.

Managing to hold out by sleeping and speaking as little as possible, his crew surfaced on 6 June 1944, successfully guiding landing craft in to Sword Beach.

"Our job was to make sure the soldiers went to the right beach, seems a little obvious now but of course we didn't have sat-nav or anything like that in 1944," he said.

"We had this enormous light that we had to rig up and get going on the upper deck.

"We set it all up and then we waited..it was quite a sight when the whole thing started," he added.

In 2017, Mr Booth was attacked on his own doorstep by a man with a hammer during a burglary.

He survived but suffered serious injuries and spent nine days in Musgrove Park Hospital.

Following his death, the former Lord Lieutenant of Somerset, Annie Maw, paid tribute to Mr Booth and his work in the Taunton community where he lived.

"He just loved being with people...and he really, really brought colour to the lives of the people around him," she said.

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