A HISTORY-MAD soldier from County Durham has turned his bedroom on an Army camp in Iraq into a war museum.

Sergeant Wayne "Bob" Dixon, from Barnard Castle, County Durham, and his roommate, who admit they are "spotters" have designed the military museum in their portable cabin, near Basra.

The museum has sand bags on its roof and outside the door and has been named Kitchener's Corner - after Lord Kitchener, the famous face on the "Your Country Needs You" posters, in the First World War.

Exhibits include decades-old Army and RAF uniforms, medals, war posters, model fighter planes and cap badges and pins from other regiments serving in Iraq.

A large picture of the Queen is also on display, which the pair greet as they enter and leave the room.

Sgt Dixon collects medals as a hobby and his roommate, Staff Sergeant Richard Parsons, 37, from north Wales, has built a museum in his attic at home.

Sgt Dixon said: "My grandfather, Raymond Dixon, from Spennymoor, served in Iraq with the Durham Light Infantry, in 1941.

"I was sent out here on the exact same date - November 7 - 63 years later.

"Both of us are spotters and collectors. The museum brightens up people's lives on the base and we have started collecting photographs of the visitors."

S/Sgt Parsons said: "Some people think we are eccentric, but I like that."

The soldiers are serving with the Royal Army Medical Corps and are in Basra on a six-month operation where they work in the medical camp.

They met while training and arranged to share a cabin while working on the British base. They even brought out some of their personal collections to display, before holding a grand opening with bunting, flags, music and a "street party".

One of their prized exhibits is also the oldest - a Princess Mary battle tin, which dates from 1914.

The soldiers' wives and children have been sending them memorabilia out to Iraq. The families are planning a holiday together in Belgium, where they will visit former battlefields.

Starting Monday: Olivia Richwald reports from the front line on how British soldiers are coping with life in Iraq.