WHAT O’LEARY DID NEXT

After returning to England to help encourage others to sign up, O’leary returned to action and served the rest of the war, much of it in the Balkans Campaign. Following Germany’s surrender, he returned to Canada where he worked in the police force for several years. He returned to Britain and, remarkably for a man aged over 50, served in WWII as a captain in the Middlesex regiment. Poor health forced him to return from the front line but he still assisted the war effort, taking command of a prisoner of war camp in England. He died in 1961 and his funeral was attended by an honour guard from the Irish Guards. His VC is displayed at the Regimental Headquarters of the Irish Guards.