King Charles and Queen Camilla hear poignant tales of courage from D-Day veterans: Heroes share memories and treasured keepsakes during visit to Buckingham Palace for 80th anniversary commemorations

Four D-Day veterans brought with them some of their most cherished tributes from the war Buckingham Palace during a meeting with the King and Queen prior to Thursday’s 80th anniversary commemoration.

Among them was a pristine pair of football boots, worn by codebreaker Bernard Morgan – once the youngest RAF sergeant to land in Normandy and now 100 years old – strapped to the straps of his military backpack.

Fellow centenarian Arthur Oborne also brought with him the blood-stained dog tags he was wearing when he was shot through the chest at Tilly-Sur-Seulles, just days after landing at Gold Beach.

Miraculously, he survived after being rescued by his best friend, Walter, who pulled him to safety and administered life-saving treatment before being taken to a field hospital.

Tragically, Arthur woke up days later to find that Walter had been killed the next day, along with the rest of his battalion of the 49th Division of the 6th Battalion, Duke of Wellington.

King Charles III meets D-Day veteran Jim Miller at Buckingham Palace, London, during the filming of a short film to be featured in BBC’s D-Day 80

King Charles III and Queen Camilla meet D-Day veterans Arthur Oborne, Jim Miller, Bernard Morgan and John Dennett at Buckingham Palace, London

‘Will you remember him? asked Queen Camille serious.

“As a family we will never forget,” Arthur replied, “We have visited his grave a number of times.”

The men’s moving meeting with Their Majesties will take place as part of a live BBC broadcast, D-Day 80: Tribute to The Fallen, airing on Wednesday 5 June.

Each veteran shares personal stories of the 1944 D-Day landings, accompanied by evocative photos and memorabilia that bring their stories to life.

John Dennett, 99, a Royal Navy gunner who manned a landing craft at Sword Beach, brought a photo of ‘the girl I met in England’, Joyce.

The night before he was to be deployed, they were so busy doing the quickstep at the local dance hall that he missed his bus back to the ship.

He and his friends had to climb the anchor chain, he told the laughing king, and were caught and disciplined.

He said it was “worth it” and added: “We must have had something in common when we got married in 1947.”

King Charles III meets D-Day veterans Bernard Morgan and John Dennett at Buckingham Palace

The king was very impressed by Bernard Morgan’s football boots, which he wore with him throughout the war.

He revealed to him that he had played twelve games of football during the conflict, including one on the landing craft to Normandy.

‘I do not believe it!’ exclaimed the fettered monarch.

‘We decided to have a football match, the army against the RAF. I think it was a draw,” Mr. Morgan recalled.

The king joked that, like his boots, they were well past their sell-by date, gently emphasizing that they were both “remarkably well preserved.”

The fourth veteran was Jim Miller, 100, part of a reconnaissance regiment, the 11th Hussars, who landed on Juno Beach.

The king also shared some of his own family memories from around D-Day, including a photo of his grandfather, King George VI, on the beach with General Montgomery just days after the June 6 attack.

Queen Camilla speaks with veteran Arthur Oborne at Buckingham Palace, London

He said: ‘My grandfather was so determined to go. He got very frustrated because they didn’t let him go until a few days later.”

He also showed the men the late King’s diary from that time.

When asked by the Queen what his memories of D-Day were, Mr Morgan said: ‘When we came off the tank of our landing ship, the army was standing there on the beach picking up the poor soldiers who had been on the first landing drowned.’

Mr Dennett said: “If you look back at the boys we lost, it was colossal. It’s scary. But that is the moment when you are grateful for what you have experienced.

“I consider myself lucky and I appreciate that I can now do what I can and enjoy the life we ​​all fought for. “Exactly,” the king nodded solemnly.

Mr Miller added: “Remembrance is so important. The younger generation needs to learn about it and take it to heart. ‘

D-Day 80: Tribute to The Fallen will be broadcast live on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Wednesday 5 June from 8.30pm to 10pm.