Sir Winston Churchill inspired World War Two veteran ready for D-Day

Cyril Jones, aged 92, was a corporal in the 516 Transport Regiment when he travelled over to France in 1944, and before leaving for battle, the prime minister told a young Mr Jones "I'll be with you".

He has since enjoyed a lifetime of rubbing shoulders with stars including the late comedian Norman Wisdom and goalkeeping legend Bert Williams, alongside his day job as a mild-mannered lorry driver.

Mr Jones, of Bilston, said: "I never really thought about getting the medal, but one day it just dropped through the letterbox. It was a very nice surprise, and I'm very proud to receive it.

"I still think about what happened, you never forget. I still remember the lads that we lost, I say a prayer for them."

He added: "We arrived at Sword Beach and drove through, all the way to Berlin.

"We went down to Southampton on June 1, and on the 5th we were supposed to go over to France, but the weather was too bad and we had to wait until the next day.

"When we were down there we met Sir Winston Churchill. I thought he was brilliant.

"He came round and shook our hands. He said to me: "I'll be with you, you're doing your country proud."

"He just wished us all the best. I couldn't thank him enough.

"I think I was only about 19 or 20. I saw some horrific things, but I really enjoyed my time in the army.

"I was a corporal, they wanted me to be a sergeant but I said no, I wanted to stay with the lads."

One of four children, Mr Jones was born and bred in Wolverhampton, and grew up with brothers Doug and Bobby, and sister Marion.

He was happily married to the late Edna, with whom he had his only son, Timothy, who works at New Cross Hospital.

A very fit man in his younger days, Mr Jones was a highly-rated amateur boxer while he was in the army.

He went toe-to-toe with several strong opponents, and was rarely on the losing side.

He said: "I would go up against anybody, I absolutely loved it. I wasn't scared, it didn't matter if they were taller than me, or bigger than me. I was so fit, I felt I could beat anybody.

"Once I fought a lad from Newcastle, he was in the area to box against someone else, but his opponent had got injured.

"He asked if there was anyone willing to fight him, and all the lads pushed me forward, so I got in the ring with him.

"He could really hit, but I gave as good as I got. I beat him, and didn't find out until after but he was one of the best in the country."

Rather than take up the sport full-time after retiring though, Mr Jones, who drove large vehicles when he was in the army, opted to become a lorry driver.

He enjoyed working for companies including Tate and Lyle and Tarmac, before retiring in the 1980s.

So popular is Mr Jones, that he has been asked to be part of the Chelsea Pensioners on several occasions, but can't participate in their activities due to his blindness.

Mr Jones, who counts former Wolves and England goalkeeper Mr Williams among his close friends, met famous comic Mr Wisdom at Buckingham Palace at a World War Two ceremony before he died.

He said: "He was a great bloke, I've been lucky to meet a few people over the years."

He added: "I'd like to thank Joy Widowson from the British Legion, who has done such a lot of work to get the medals to those who were in the war."