Searching for a hero
GARY LINEKER may have been a hero on the football pitch, but as he discovers in this film – his grandfather was a true war hero.
It’s an emotional journey to Italy for the 58-year-old former England captain as he retraces the steps of his mum’s dad, Stanley Abbs.
“He never spoke about his wartime experiences and now he’s passed away it’s too late to ask him,” says Gary.
All he knows is that Stanley served in Italy in the Royal Army Medical Corps – despite only being a grocers’ assistant.
But thanks to his unit’s war diary, he finds out about this often forgotten, but brutal campaign.
It started from the first landings at Salerno and saw endless months of gruelling fighting over mountains and through torrential rivers.
“This was no walk in the park, this was brutal,” says Gary, who is shocked to learn that those who fought in Italy were nicknamed the D-Day Dodgers.
Their heroism of taking Nazi-occupied Rome was completely overshadowed by the D-Day Landings the following day.
Aside from the tale of Gary’s grandfather and his unit, there are some wonderful interviews here with Second World War veterans, such as 104-year-old William Earl and 95-year-old Fred Mason.
“Anyone who says they weren’t frightened is either telling lies or they weren’t there,” says Fred.
And ultimately, it proves moving for Gary as he finds out what his grandfather experienced.
“What he went through was truly horrific,” he says. “I have so much pride in what he did. They went through hell.”