Dear Reader - What a real WW2 hero thinks of VE Day and unusual sights in lockdown Harrogate

The caring Harrogate man in question isn’t accustomed to wearing PPE, not the apron, nor the gloves nor the mask.

He’s not dressed this way because he’s tending to a patient.

He’s just a civilian like you or me and this is what it takes to visit his dad during lockdown.

It’s early Tuesday evening and I’m tallking to David and, also, his father John on the phone.

John is no average interviewee.

At the weekend he had a visit from a Channel 4 film crew for an appearance on The Steph Show.

The elderly man I am talking to is a real-life D-Day hero trapped at home less than two weeks from his 96th birthday.

To be honest, John, or Jack as he prefers to be called, doesn’t sound quite as well as the last time I spoke to him in person 18 months ago.

The ex-Royal Marine is struggling under isolation in terms of his health and his morale.

David and the rest of the family are pulling out all the stops to support him as he struggles with various medical conditions and the sheer boredom, hence the whole PPE rigmarole.

Remarkably, Jack’s spirit somehow remains intact, that same spirit that contributed so much to Britain’s ultimate success in World War Two.

Knowing him as I do, I wasn’t surprised when this modest man who fought his way across the beaches of Normandy in 1944 told me he wasn’t doing much for the 75th anniversary of VE Day tomorrow, though the street he lives in is putting out the bunting.

No offence intended to anyone organising a street party or raising a small glass for the occasion but Jack is from that dwindling breed of heroes who won the very victory that allows us to celebrate.

He doesn’t need much reminding of that himself.

Harrogate D Day hero looks back at the first VE Day

It still surprises me even now how difficult it is to avoid bumping into people I know as I take my daily walk or run on the semi-deserted streets and paths of Harrogate, though, thankfully given the importance of social distancing, not literally.

First, there was the ‘incident’ with the Harrogate music producer.

I came across him on one of his first ventures outdoors for weeks after recovering at home from Covid-19.

It was only a ‘mild’ bout, he told me, but when he described what ‘mild’ had felt like, a shiver ran through me.

An hour later I spotted a couple of familiar faces, well, I think I did.

One was dressed in a tutu, the other in a ladies pilot outfit.

They were both members of Nidd Valley Road Runners, the running club I used to be in.

No, they don’t usually dress like that and they hadn’t lost their marbles.

The outfits were part of an attempt to turn the permitted daily exercise into a way of raising money for Harrogate District Food Bank.

The fancy dress fundraising idea originated from Nidd Valley member Bec Carman whose partner Phil is vicar of St Andrew’s Church in Harrogate.

It’s a novel idea and so far it’s raised just shy of £700 for this very good cause.

Still, it was a surreal sight to see in broad daylight in the upside down world of lockdown

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