Tributes paid as decorated D-Day veteran Ted Owens dies weeks before 99th birthday

In 2019, veteran Ted Owens was greeted with a hero's welcome when he visited pupils at a Cardiff school

Tributes have been paid to D-Day veteran Ted Owens who has died just a few weeks short of his 99th birthday.

Mr Owens is perhaps best known to viewers for featuring in the programme Lest We Forget in which, then aged 95, he travelled across France and Germany with two primary school children, teaching them about the Second World War as he retraced his steps as a young soldier.

Born in Pembroke Dock in 1924, Mr Owen played a role in liberating Dunkirk in 1944, for which he was awarded the Légion D’Honneur.

He was a commando in the Royal Marines and a marksman. He landed on Sword Beach for D-Day on June 6, having fought throughout the war.

He was injured during the invasion and sent home to recover but returned to the front in August and fought his way to Dunkirk.

During his trip back to France with ITV in 2019, Ted was frequently stopped in the street for photos.

Returning to Pont L'Évêque in France, he also found his portrait on a lamppost after helping liberate the town decades earlier.

Talking about his experiences in the Second World War, Mr Owens said the enormity of the Dunkirk operation was hard to take in and he was not absolutely sure that it was real until the shells started landing around his craft.

After featuring on Lest We Forget alongside the veteran, Evan Lewis, who was ten at the time, described it as "the greatest history lesson ever".

Mr Lewis said: "D-Day veteran Ted Owens may be 85 years older than me but I am very lucky to call him my friend."

He added: "He is the only person I know who has been blown up, shot, and injured by an exploding mine.

"Being able to talk to a witness of WW2 is like turning the pages of a thrilling history book."

As well as visiting war graves and battlefields with Mr Owen, Mr Lewis and his sister Caoimhe also accompanied him as he went to Germany for the first time.

Mr Lewis said the veteran "loved it" there, adding: "He said he wanted to make new friends and he succeeded."

After visiting St. Mary's Catholic Primary School in Cardiff to talk to pupils who gave him a warm welcome, Mr Owens said: "I'm lost for words. It makes me feel like I've done something good for the younger generation. I only hope it will sink in and help them. I am proud of that."  

Paying tribute, freelance producer Greg Lewis said: "I was honoured and privileged to share so many happy times with Ted. He was a wealth of information and stories, a fascinating man."

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