D-Day veteran, 107, recounts landing in Normandy June 1944

Richard Brown was born on March 18, 1917, during the First World War. At just 17, Richard and his friends enrolled in the Territorial Army as they were "bored".

Little did he know that his military career would span some of the great battles of World War Two, including D-Day.

Richard previously said: "I signed up for something to do in the evenings. If I'd known there was a war coming I wouldn't have joined."

On Tuesday, June 6, 1944, Richard was part of an estimated 156,000 troops who were drafted in to target German forces on the coast of northern France, in the battle to liberate Nazi-occupied western Europe.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of D-Day, with events taking place up and down the country and overseas to pay tribute to the veterans loved and lost and remember the events of the war.

Veteran Richard's family were unaware of his role in the army until 2015, when he suddenly announced "I was there" while watching a war documentary.

Since then his family, including son-in-law David Campbell, 75, have worked to get him recognised with the Légion d'honneur medal award to D-Day veterans from the French Government.

After years of trying, Richard has now been officially recognised with the award for his role during the D-Day landings.

"We knew he was in the war but he never talked about it," David said.

After further research, it came to light that Richard landed at Juno Beach alongside the Canadians.

When the war started in 1939, he was in the Royal Fusiliers infantry regiment, but the Fall of France in 1940 and the threat of German aircraft in the skies above Britain meant his unit was converted to anti-aircraft gunners and part of The Royal Artillery.

When D-Day came his anti-aircraft unit wasn't needed so was instead handed a rifle and sent down with the other soldiers. 

Richard, who was the company's sergeant major, said: "I landed in the first wave at Juno Beach with the commandos and Canadians at about 6am.

"We got off the boat and the water just covered our boots. It was up to our thighs.

"Our commanders went ahead of us. They were getting shot and we had to push their bodies out of the way so we could go in. It was terrible.

"Young blokes about 18 shot."

The Royal Artillery pushed inland to the city of Caen where a battle would rage for two months before the British and Canadian forces finally captured it.

Richard moved into the Netherlands before descending into Belgium, fighting in the freezing Ardennes, before finally breaking into Germany. He was in the northern German village of Mesum when the news broke out that the war was over in May 1945.

Having learned about Richard's experiences, David said: "I am so glad he never came across the concentration camps. What he did see was enough.

"I am dumbfounded by what he has gone through.

"Listening to what he has gone through - it is another world altogether. 

"You should never forget what has happened. It should not be allowed to die. These blokes went through hell. Dead or alive, they are all heroes."

After the war, Richard moved back to London where his wife Ivy Florence was working as a seamstress.

He eventually moved to Britwell in the 1950s and worked for an engineering company on Slough Trading Estate until his retirement.

Today, Richard's remaining family include his son-in-law, two grandchildren and two great-grandchildren who all "think the world of him".