A HAMPSHIRE Normandy veteran has been officially honoured by the French Government.

Andrew Bramley has received the Legion d’honneur for his role in the liberation of France in 1944.

Mr Bramley, 93, of Main Road, Colden Common, was among four veterans to be hailed on Armistice Day by the Honorary French Consul, Captain Francois Jean, at a ceremony at HMS Excellent in Portsmouth.

Before the ceremony the veterans were special guests at an outdoor service of remembrance at the base which included a two-minute silence at 11am.

Mr Bramley served as a despatch rider with the war correspondents.

He survived the D-Day landings, the Battle of the Bulge, the invasion of Holland and helped war reporters tell the tales of war.

One of the journalists he met was BBC reporter Richard Dimbleby, who was stationed at Cruelly after the D-Day landings.

Andrew had several close calls with death when he served. On the third day of the Allied invasion, the road he was driving on was bombarded and a shell knocked him off his bike.

Other close calls saw him almost drown as he crossed the Waal river on a pontoon, when his bike was tipped into the river.

In Holland in 1944, he was following a staff car in front of him which hit a landmine and the impact blew him off his bike.

When he reported back, his adjutant told him they had already telegrammed his wife that he was dead. He returned home to Wickham in Hampshire four days after she received the telegram - much to her surprise.

After the war he worked as a lorry driver for Meon Valley Timber Company and he has been married to his wife Iris for 25 years.

Commander Steve Shaw, who helped organise the event, said: “The veterans were extremely proud and honoured to be recognised in this way.

"I was delighted to be able to help get this presentation organised – especially on Armistice Day which made their ceremony even more special. It gave us the opportunity to show them how much the country and the Royal Navy cares about them - it gives them a sense of value.”