'I woke up in a bath two days after VE Day'

Yahoo

08-05-2025

'I woke up in a bath two days after VE Day'
Douglas Cracknell, 99, from Suffolk remembered the celebrations that took place on VE Day in 1945 [Sarah Lilley/BBC]
A veteran said he drank so much when celebrating the end of World War Two that he woke up two days later in a bath in Belgium.
Douglas Cracknell from Cransford in Suffolk, was 19 years old on VE Day on 8 May 1945, which marked the Allied victory over Nazi Germany in Europe.
He served with the 5th Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry as a rifleman and was in Bruges when the end of the war in Europe was announced. He said people went "berserk".
Mr Cracknell, now aged 99, was recently awarded the Legion d'Honneur by the French government in a ceremony at Framlingham College near his home, which he said he was "amazed" by.
"I was on a guard duty and everybody went berserk. That was a really wonderful time," Mr Cracknell said of Victory in Europe Day, 80 years ago.
"To think the way people acted at that time was fantastic... [they were] drinking and singing and dancing with each other in the street; it was marvellous.
"We had several drinks and I think I probably lost about two days of my life because I was sat in the bath when I came to."
Mr Cracknell was enlisted in the Army when he was 18 [Contributed]
Mr Cracknell said as a younger teenager he did not expect to be enlisted to fight and said his father told him that he expected it to be over before he reached fighting age.
However, he joined the Army and took part in landings at Arromanches in Normandy on 22 June 1944, shortly after the first D-Day landings, and fought across north-west Europe.
They faced bloody battles including taking part in Operation Jupiter with the capture of Hill 112, a key strategic point in Normandy that cost the lives of 10,000 men.
Mr Cracknell was also injured during several points of the war including shrapnel wounds to his face and a temporary loss of hearing.
Mr Cracknell was awarded the Legion d'Honneur this year by the French government for his efforts in the war [Contributed]
Mr Cracknell was keen to share his story to ensure people today knew what veterans went through.
"There's only a few of us left from that era," he continued.
"I haven't had an easy time, but I haven't had a hard time either.
"I've been able to bear it all, but some of them broke down. I was fortunate I think that I got through it.
"Some nights I sit here on my own and think about my mates and what that would have been like if they were all here. I think it would have been lovely.
"I think people should really know what others went through to save them."
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