Charles Horne: ‘I was scared but you just had to go with it’

'We got fairly close in before the Germans realised what was happening'

Charles Horne was on-board one of the first allied vessels to head towards Normandy on the morning of D-Day.

The 18-year-old trawlerman, from Port Seton in East Lothian, was working on the MMS Motor Minesweeper 291.

British minesweepers were sent ahead of American troops so they could land on Omaha Beach- one of the five beaches chosen for the Normandy landings.

He went on clearing mines for two years after Victory over Japan Day - or VJ Day.

After the war, Mr Horne returned to his job as a fisherman.

We Were There aims to collect as many first-hand accounts as possible by 2025, the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two, to preserve veterans' accounts for future generations.

The BBC is currently working on the project with a number of partners including the Normandy Memorial Trust and Royal British Legion. Some of the stories collected may be shared with our partners and used on BBC News platforms.

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