Teen Victoria Cross winner was an 'inspiring hero'

Jerome Donnini (second from right) said society needs heroes to inspire people

The nephew of one of the youngest Victoria Cross winners in World War Two has said his uncle was an inspiration and that society "needs heroes and heroines".

Fusilier Dennis Donnini VC, from Easington Colliery, was just 19 when he died in a battle in the village of Stein in Selfkant, Germany.

His nephew, Jerome Donnini, took part in an event at The Story in Durham to commemorate what would have been the soldier's 100th birthday.

Mr Donnini said it was important to remember his uncle's legacy because "every society needs heroes - they give other people inspiration".

The soldier was awarded the cross posthumously for "magnificent bravery", according to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

It said the soldier's "superb gallantry" and "self-sacrifice" had drawn enemy fire away from his comrades.

The commission said because of his actions Mr Donnini's platoon had been able to capture the position including 30 Germans and two machine guns.

The Donnini family posed for a photograph in London's Trafalgar Square with the Victoria Cross medal

The soldier's nephew, who lives in Durham and was also in service, said his uncle had been a "legend in Easington" and that schools had photographs of him on their walls.

The 84-year-old said the soldier's mother, his grandmother, had "never really got over" her loss and he recalled visiting her wearing his military uniform.

"As I walked through the door she thought I was Dennis and she burst into tears," he said.

"She was an old lady then."

The Story is digitising the Donnini family's story for its archives.