“AS we approached, the sound of the gunfire got louder and louder and louder.

“It was only when we got nearer that we learned it was our battleships blazing away. What a relief.”

Stanley Dickinson, aged 85, recalls the moment he approached the Normandy beaches as part of the D-Day landings in the Second World War.

Thousands of Allied soldiers stormed the beaches of northern France on June 6, 1944, marking the start of the major offensive against the Nazis which ultimately forced the end of the war.

Mr Dickinson, who served in the Royal Artillery and landed in France a few days after D-Day, shared his memories as he stood in the grounds of Bolton Parish Church, where there is a memorial to those who fought in the Normandy invasion.

He is one of four Second World War veterans from the Bolton branch of the Normandy Veterans’ Association (NVA) who will be attending the 65th anniversary ceremony this weekend.

They have been awarded a £3,125 grant to attend the memorial event in Normandy by the Big Lottery Fund, as part of the fund’s Heroes Return 2 initiative.

Fellow veteran James Ratcliffe, who is chairman of the Bolton branch, said: “I’m pleased we’ve got this grant. I think I’ve been back about 14 times since the war but this one will be special as it is the 65th anniversary. I don’t suppose we will do it again.”

Mr Ratcliffe, aged 86, from Farnworth, was pulled away from fighting in Sicily to take part in the invasion. He served with the Durham Light Infantry and landed on D-Day.

“We had a dry landing — we didn’t even get our feet wet,” he said. “We got out and made our way to the congregation area.

“From there we pushed on inland. We had to get to the first ridge before the Germans got there.”

Mr Ratcliffe, and Mr Dickinson, from Chorley, will be joined on their trip by fellow veterans David Teacher and Anthony Colgen, as well as Mr Ratcliffe’s son, Alan, Martin Wilson and Bryn Greenslade, who are also members of the association.

The Normandy event will be attended by heads of state and Prince Charles.

  • A service will be held at 11am on Saturday at Bolton’s war memorial in Victoria Square.