A fly-past of a Hurricane helped a World War Two veteran celebrate his 100th birthday.
Douglas Marsh celebrated at Holbeach Hospital where he now lives on Saturday, July 8.
Douglas was born and lived most of his life in London.
He was 16 at the start of World War Two and he joined the RAF Defence Cadet Corps.
He wanted to join up to the full air force but was told not to by his mother until he turned 18.
There he flew Beaufighters in defence of Great Britain and was then stationed in Burma until 1946.
Afterward Douglas spent a period of time living in India and attended art school where he developed a love of classical music.
After the war he worked in electrical telecommunications including being involved in what was the first commercial computer available in this country which, he said, was three filing cabinets large.
Upon retirement he saw an advertisement at The Barbican centre in London for newly-built bungalows in Long Sutton and moved there with wife Stella in 1986.
Douglas got involved with the Long Sutton and Sutton Bridge RAF Association including being a standard bearer for it right up to the age of 90 fundraising for it led to him being awarded a National Presidential Certificate in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List.
He held prominent roles at both St Mary’s Church in Long Sutton and St Matthew’s Church in Sutton Bridge
Having previously played rugby, he took up golf in his retirement and was one of the founding members of Tydd Golf Club.
He’s also had a passion for gardening and art.
“As long as my brain holds out then I’m happy carrying on,” Douglas told The Voice. “I’ve had an interesting life and I’m one of those people who thinks there’s no such word as ‘can’t’.”
Douglas has five children, Caroline, Anne, Susan, David and Simon, as well as four grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
Caroline said: “It was a lovely party, finished off in an awe inspiring way with a flypast of a Hurricane, based at Coningsby, the last one to be built.”
