TO conquer Europe, the Allies first had to hop the Channel. However, to truly defeat Germany, they had to cross the Rhine.
It is 75 years since the D-Day landings in Normandy, one of the great turning points in the Second World War. But it took nearly a year for the armies of America, Britain and others to get over the great river that protected the Nazi heartland to the west.
Now a play – Bomb Happy at the Edinburgh Fringe – tracks the stories of five young servicemen from D-Day to VE-Day. Few who survived that ordeal live today. However, one, 93-year-old Ken Cooke, did make it to the show. And now an appeal has been launched to find other Scots who crossed the Rhine.
Originally a member of the Green Howards, Mr Cooke was wounded while fighting through Normandy, and sent for treatment at Stracathro Hospital near Brechin.
Later he returned to the frontline to serve with the Highland Light Infantry
in Belgium to help make up for losses
they had suffered as they pushed back
the Nazis.
It was alongside Scottish comrades that the teenager witnessed another of the key moments of the war, climbing into a small boat and crossing the Rhine into Germany.
He said: “We were all dug in and ready and then the artillery started – firing against the German side of the river. I’d never heard noise like it. It was simply incredible.”
After landing on the other bank they pushed into enemy territory, ending up in an abandoned trench. There were parachutes around the place, some hanging from trees.
He said: “So that’s how we spent the night. We gathered them in and slept in the trench wrapped in parachutes.”
Bomb Happy is being shown at the Army’s own venue. Venue organisers want to help Mr Cooke find old Highland Light Infantry veterans.
Mr Cooke said: “In all the years that have passed I have been to lots of events and asked around but have only ever met one other person who was there.”
Mr Cooke was accompanied by Ken Smith, 94, another of the veterans whose story was at the heart of Bomb Happy who also had Scottish connections, having come here from Yorkshire to train on the lochs for D-Day.
He was wounded five months after the initial but later posted to Palestine. The wartime experiences took a permanent
toll on his health and he still suffers
from PTSD.
Mr Smith, said: “When the idea for a play using our memories came about
back in 2016 we never thought we would still be here for the 75thAnniversary of D-Day to see it performed at the Edinburgh Fringe!”
Brigadier Robin Lindsay, operational head of the Army in Scotland, praised both men.
He said: “It’s deeply moving to meet these men, to shake their hands and thank them for all they did 75 years ago – in D-Day and beyond, to the final liberation of Europe.
“Bomb Happy is an important piece of work because it allows us to understand these world-changing events through the words and experiences of the young men who made them happen.”
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