AN ‘inspirational’ blind veteran managed to record memories of his life before he died.

Maldon man Les Brown died last month at the age of 91 after losing his battle with cancer.

Earlier this year he shared stories of his childhood in Marylebone, London, his life as a soldier and the support he received when living with sight loss as a result of a war wound and later macular degeneration.

Blind Veterans UK enabled the conversations between Healthwatch Essex and Mr Brown to capture his memoirs as he faced the end of his life.

On Christmas Eve last year, Mr Brown was given the heart-breaking diagnosis of terminal lung cancer.

Having been told he had just a matter of weeks to live, Les moved to the Blind Veterans UK Centre in Brighton.

Despite his diagnosis, he kept his days in the Brighton Centre busy by working in the library, joining their choir and sharing his stories with family and residents. A spokesman said: “In his early teens, Les went to extreme lengths to join the Army despite being underage, including running away from home to nearby barracks twice.

“At just 15 years old, he was sent to join the Royal Horse Guards in Windsor before being deployed to fight in Germany in 1945. This was a trip he nearly didn’t return from.

“On a journey to collect rations, his vehicle was attacked in a trap set up by Hitler Youth.

“He suffered injuries to both knees, elbows and chest as well as a gunshot wound to his head which destroyed the vision in one eye.

“He miraculously survived, with his regiment finding him three days later.”

The team first met Mr Brown at a visit to the local Blind Veterans UK choir, Vision in Song, which helped him combat loneliness by singing with fellow comrades from the Army, Navy and Royal Air Force.

Mr Brown gave Healthwatch Essex some insight into how he managed his sight loss on a day-to-day basis such as going shopping.

Healthwatch CEO Dr David Sollis said: “We are honoured to have met such an inspirational man and are thankful to him for sharing his experiences with us.

“We are the custodians of stories and will continue to capture lived experience of patients to help make positive change where needed.”

His funeral was held in the chapel at Blind Veterans UK in Brighton on November 6.