A NORTH Yorkshire veteran paralysed from the neck down was among those chosen to take part in an historic watch at The Cenotaph in Central London.

Felix Agbotsu, 31, from Northallerton served as a gunner in the Royal Artillery for two years and completed a tour of Iraq. But in 2003 he was involved in a car crash while on leave, which left him paralysed from the neck down.

Mr Agbotsu spent 18 months as a patient at the Royal British Legion’s (RBL) Lister House care home and the legion paid for equipment to help him remain mobile.

For the 100th anniversary of the First World War, the legion is asking people to not just commemorate the memory of the fallen, but also to focus on the future of the living.

At the forefront of this message is Mr Agbotsu, as the Northallerton soldier was picked as the face of this year's Poppy Appeal.

He was also selected to take part in the The Watch, a sunrise to sunset vigil at The Cenotaph in London on Thursday, October 23.

The act was designed to highlight how the charity helps both the memory of the fallen and also members of today’s Armed Forces live on. Nearly 100 members of the public, British Armed forces and people who have received the legion’s help took part over the course of the day.

The Watch was inspired by the imagery of the repatriation of the body of the Unknown Warrior, where Guards of The Watch kept a vigil by the coffin from the fields of France to his final resting place in Westminster Abbey on November 11, 1920.

Mr Agbotsu said: “I was honoured to be a part of this historic event. The Royal British Legion is the nation’s Custodian of Remembrance and this is a great way for anyone, whether they have served or not, to remember a loved one and celebrate our armed forces.”