AN anthology of poignant poems depicting the harsh realities of war are set to be published as a lasting legacy to the army veteran who wrote them and for and those who served with in the Second World War.

Firefighter Allan Pattinson who is behind the project is now looking for biographies of old soldiers from Durham Light Infantry to intersperse with the 50 poems by the late Bill Ridley.

Funds will help maintain a war memorial Mr Pattinson was instrumental in creating for DLI soldiers who fell fighting against the Germans for control of a small French village of Lingevres, near Bayeux, in Normandy, on June 14, 1944.

Mr Pattinson, of the County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service, said: “The poems are so moving and should be read by other people. You can see the effort he has put into it. I just thought they are too good to waste.

“I was trying to think of ways to make money for the upkeep of the meF

“Some of the poems are quite graphic in their depiction of the horrors of war - most of them are very moving. You can see that he has gone through some bad times. The book will be lasting memorial to him and other veterans of the DLI.”

He added: “What I want it to be about is the ordinary DLI lad and am composing biographies and am appealing for help.

“The biographies will include where the soldiers were born, where they lived, why they joined up and where and a brief history of their military career – ideally with photographs.

“I am interested in showing people they were all just ordinary Durham lads.”

Mr Ridley of Peterlee, enlisted with the 9th Battalion DLI at the outbreak of war in 1939. He fought at Dunkirk, France, where he was rescued from the beach by a navy destroyer.

He was then posted to north Africa with the 8th Army, as part of the famed Desert Rats.

Mr Ridley was wounded in arm by an 88mm shell in June 1942 in the same engagement during which |Private Wakenshaw was killed. Wakenshaw would earn a posthumous VC, the British armed forces’ highest award for bravery.

Mr Ridley was sent to South Africa to recover from his injuries - with the shrapnel staying in his arm for the rest of his life.

Shortly before his death in 2005 at the age of 86 years, Mr Ridley presented a folder of his poems to fellow veteran Richard ‘Dicky’ Atkinson, who was also wounded in the same time as him.

Mr Pattison said: “Myself and fellow firefighters used to visit Normandy every D-Day.

“At one particular service in a village called Lingevres we met veterans who had taken part in the actual battle there, including Mr Atkinson and Major James Corrigan.

“Listening to their stories was fascinating. The church where we stood chatting was the actual church Major Corrigan went to have his wounds dressed.

“I decided we must set up a memorial to the men of the DLI who died, not just in this battle but also in the Normandy campaign.

“We finally put the stone in place at the church in Lingevres. It was unveiled by Mr Atkinson.”

Any relatives or family of DLI veterans who can help should contact Mr Pattinson on 07587189741 or 0191-3757785.