D-Day servicemen silhouettes return from Normandy

The haunting visual display reflects the number of British servicemen who died on D-Day

Hand-made silhouettes of 1,475 servicemen have returned to the UK after standing on display in Normandy since April to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

The art installation, by Standing with Giants, arrived in Southsea after an overnight ferry crossing from France.

The figures travelled in a convoy of four articulated lorries, flanked by 40 Harley Davidson riders.

The silhouettes will be taken to the National Trust Stowe Gardens, in Buckinghamshire, where they will stand from 1 October until 11 November.

Ex-Royal Navy marine engineer Andy Gatherer was in Portsmouth to pay his respects as the figures returned to the UK

The visual display reflects the number of servicemen who died while serving under British command on 6 June 1944.

Artist Dan Barton, who founded the project from Witney, Oxfordshire, said it has "touched so many people" and he would like to raise funds to take the artwork back out to Normandy next year.

He said: "It's a brilliant way to tell the story.

"People want to pay their respects, they want to come and grieve the losses and be thankful for their freedom."

Some veterans were in Portsmouth to pay their respects as the silhouette figures made their return.

Among them was Andy Gatherer, an ex-Royal Navy marine engineer, who served in the Falklands War.

He said: "You can see names on a wall, of which there are thousands, but to see the actual silhouettes, it gives you a visual picture of the amount of sacrifice that was given by the people back in World War Two and in other conflicts."

Mike is a member of the Harley Owners Group, which was escorting the installation

Mike is a member of the Harley Owners Group, which escorted the statues from Blenheim Palace over to France earlier this year.

The group is now ensuring the statues make their way to Buckinghamshire.

He said it was "incredibly moving" and "poignant" to see.