TV presenter Kate Garraway was left emotional on Thursday morning after revealing a touching gesture from one of the men who landed on the beaches at Normandy eight decades ago.
Garraway's husband Derek Draper died on January 3 following a series of health complications after contracting COVID-19 during the pandemic and the 57-year-old explained how one D-Day veteran was keen to comfort her over her loss.
To mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day, Garraway reported live from the French town and spoke with 100-year-old soldier John Life about the historic occasion and his heroic actions when he was just a teenager.
"The passion with which he wanted to make this journey because he knew he may not see another D-Day commemoration was overwhelming," she told viewers.
"And I sat down with him amongst those gravestones to speak with him about his memories of that day."
In a pre-recorded clip, Life was able to recall the momentous day in detail and he became emotional when detailing exactly what happened when he and his comrades touched down on Sword Beach.
'I'm not a hero.'
— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) June 6, 2024
John Life is 100 years old and was a former Bombardier in the Royal Artillery
John emotionally retells his memories from D-Day. pic.twitter.com/apcapqSANF
Garraway then held Life's hand and branded him "amazing" before the cameras cut to the ITV presenter on her own ready to deliver a live report.
The presenter then delved into what the heroic soldier had said to her before the cameras started rolling
"He was amazing in his humility. One of the first things he said was, 'I'm so sorry for your loss' to me, about the passing of Derek, my husband," Garraway told GMB viewers.
"And the idea that he knew that and thought of that with all that he had been through, I just said to him, 'Look, there would have been no Derek as it was, there would have been no me, there wouldn't have been any of our lives without what you did'.
Derek Draper died on January 3
PA
"He cried and we held hands. It's hard to overstate really how important it is for them that we remember and how important it is for us that we remember too."
Life served as a Bombardier in the Royal Artillery during the war and was keen to heap praise on the memory of the fallen, humbly telling Garraway: "I'm not a hero."
He was left in tears as he recalled "glancing back" at a pal of his as they arrived 80 years ago, only to tragically see he "got one in the throat" and died soon after.
"You see the shells coming over you and you hear them coming and there's a plop in the sea, and I remember saying, 'There's nothing in them'," Life said with a chuckle. "Of course, it wasn't like that. It got a bit nasty."
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John Life: The 100-year-old discussed his memories of the war
ITV
"What are your feelings coming back here?" Garraway asked to which Life replied: "Coming back... well, I was pleased to.
"It's always fascinating that effort to land as we did, so that was one item.
"But of course, there's the other side things weren't so nice with colleagues being killed and that so it's a bit of each."
When asked if he felt like a hero, Life humbly replied: "Oh no. There's too many people helping you who (are the heroes)."
