Skip to content

Percy Chafer: 'We were told to run towards the bombs'

Percy Chafer landed on Sword Beach with the 7th Armoured Division of the British Army on D-Day.

D-Day saw 156,000 Allied troops arrive in Normandy on 6 June 1944 during World War Two.

Mr Chafer, from Pimlico, remembers being given orders to run into the bombs being dropped from above, and disobeying orders to ignore dying and injured cows caught in the crossfire.

Percy died peacefully at home on 16 October 2024, weeks before his 105th birthday.

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.

If you have a story to share, or know someone who does, please click here to tell us a little bit more or use one of the methods below.

Do you or someone you know have memories of World War Two? Please share these experiences by emailing [email protected].

Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also get in touch in the following ways:

Explore More