234163 Pte. Arnold Edward Dossetter British Army Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry from:London My father, Ted Dossetter who sadly passed away in 1980, told me that during the lead up to the D-Day landings he was based at Portland in Dorset. He told me that during this time his unit were ordered to clear bodies washed up from the sea on the beach near to where they were billeted for special training. These were later identified as the infamous friendly fire personnel who sadly lost their lives in the training prior to the invasion of the Normandy beaches. This and other memories of his time in Belgium, Germany and Denmark as part of the Allied Expeditionary Force lived with him until he died.
I still have his roll-call book plus other items and photos of him and my uncle in Holland, Belgium and Denmark. My father's best friend in the army, Bert Harberd, introduced his sister (my mother) Iris (nickname 'Tootie') to him on a visit to Portland and they later married. So I had two members of my family in this unit; my uncle who boxed for the regiment, and my father who was goalkeeper in the football team. Uncle Albert died at the age of 91 in 2014. I am very proud of them both and grateful for the contribution they both gave fighting for their country.
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