SAYING GOODBYE ...
friends and family pay their respects at the
funeral of Capt Richard Annand.

After three days and nights of fierce fighting as they tried to keep the Germans back from the River Dyal, Capt Annand's platoon was ordered to withdraw.

Despite being wounded himself, he returned to the field to rescue his seriously injured batman.
He pushed him back to Allied lines in a wheelbarrow, before collapsing through loss of blood.
His actions and work on firing ranges cost Capt Annand his hearing, and he spent much of his life helping to set up and run support groups for deaf and disabled people.

Canon Jon Bell, team rector at St Cuthbert's Church, where Capt Annand and his wife Shirley were devout worshippers, said the brave actions which won him the VC defined the man he was.
"He was a gentleman, courteous to the end. He was a modest man who felt his VC was for all those men who had served with him.

"I believe his courage and valour was in everyday life.
"Capt Dick Annand: the hero, the husband, Christian disciple and campaigner - we salute you."

The congregation sang hymns including He Who Would Valiant Be and the DLI regimental hymn Abide With Me.

A lone bugler from the 2nd Battalion of the Light Infantry, a successor to the DLI, played the Last Post and Reveille before Capt Annand's coffin began its final journey to Durham Crematorium.

After a private family service there, many members of the congregation gathered for a funeral tea at the DLI Museum.

A memorial service of thanksgiving for Capt Annand's life will take place at Durham Cathedral on Monday, February 7.