A 102nd birthday brought a flood of post for World War Two veteran George Durrant, with hundreds of cards sent to his home in Crawley, West Sussex.
Durrant received well-wishes from around the world, thanking him for his service.
Joseph Smith, from the voluntary history group Last of the Greats, started the appeal after meeting him. The Veteran’s Foundation also took on the call for cards.
According to the Veteran’s Foundation, Durrant lived through the Blitz before serving overseas in India and Burma with the Intelligence Corps during World War Two.
“Working in demanding and dangerous conditions, he played a vital role in supporting military communications,” it added.
After the war, Durrant returned home and worked as an engineer.
Smith said he organised the birthday appeal because Durrant, “the first veteran I ever met”, has a “very special place in his heart”.
He said Durrant had already received 145 cards ahead of his birthday on Saturday, with more still in the post.
Durrant previously recalled that when he arrived in Burma, now Mynamar, for his wartime posting, “was the intense heat and humidity of the jungle. I’d never experienced anything like it before, and haven’t since.”
“The snakes were awful. You had to check your shoes every morning because they loved curling up in your boots at night and if they bit you it was often fatal.”
He added that Japanese soldiers frequently shot at his camp and he was involved in several firefights.
“You learned to live with the risk somehow,” Durrant said. “You sort of accepted your fate, you couldn’t change anything after all. I lost a couple of friends while I was based there.
“It’s something that never leaves you.”
Smith said they surprised Durrant by laying the cards out in the garden.
“When he saw them, he said, oh my God, I didn’t know. I knew this many people.”
“We had to explain that these were all complete strangers who wanted to wish him a happy birthday,” Smith laughed.
Smith said the cards, including some from Austria, New Zealand, Germany, France and the US, contained “heartfelt messages”.
“[They thanked] people like George, who fought for their county [and] freedom.
“What astounded me is that these…. people don’t even know George at all.”
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