Weymouth veteran, 100, to be honoured at Remembrance event

Tony Cash said many of his Merchant Navy colleagues lost their lives during World War Two

A 100-year-old World War Two veteran is to be a guest of honour at the Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance.

Tony Cash from Weymouth, Dorset, is one of the last survivors of the Atlantic convoys, which are a focus of Saturday's event in London.

More than 30,000 merchant seamen lost their lives during the war, but Mr Cash was only once on a ship that was attacked and damaged.

He said: "It was a bit scary but we still had our duties to do."

Mr Cash joined the Merchant Navy at the outbreak of war when he was 16

The convoys brought vital cargos of food, oil and other supplies from North America during the so-called Battle of the Atlantic.

German U-boats and warships are reported to have sunk between 2,000 and more than 5,000 Allied ships.

Mr Cash said: "I was lucky... When there was action, all you used to do was stand on the bridge and hope we'd survive.

"We wanted fuel for the Navy, the Air Force... it all had to come by sea. I think we played a great part in the victory."

He became a Royal Navy sailor when his merchant ship was taken over by the Admiralty in 1940

Mr Cash said he joined the Merchant Navy in 1939 at the age of 16, thinking the war would end within weeks.

He moved from ship to ship, sailing across the Atlantic and around the world, until the conflict ended in 1945.

In 2017, he was presented with the Merchant Navy medal by the Princess Royal.

The veteran was honoured for his service by Princess Anne

On Saturday, he is due to attend the annual Remembrance event at the Royal Albert Hall.

He said: "It's a great honour... but I'm not too keen on [public recognition] myself, because we survived but what about the poor people who lost their lives?

"The casualties among the tanker men were very heavy but we still carried on."