Voices of VE Day 75 - Danny Mason

WW2 Nation Podcast

To mark the 75th Anniversary Commemorations of VE Day, we spoke with a few of the veterans we know about their experiences on 8th May 1945 and hear their advice for future generations.

As soon as he was able to do so, Danny volunteered to become a paratrooper going through the all the rigorous training that this entailed to wear the famous maroon berry. Posted to the 8th Parachute Battalion of the 6th Airborne Division which had cut its teeth in Normandy and in the Ardennes already. Danny was keen not to let the war pass him by due to his age, so when the opportunity came to fill the boots of a comrade who could no longer jump because of medical grounds, he jumped at the chance to volunteer for his first overseas operation and first combat jump. This was to be the largest Allied airborne drop of the war to date – Operation Varsity – with the Rhine Crossing in March 1945. Once on the ground, Danny and his comrades battled through Germany helping spearhead the thrust towards the River Elbe. Only a few days before the war officially ended, Danny had been wounded by a German aircraft attack on his position. He was evacuated out of the line to Belgium and was in hospital on 8th May 1945 for VE Day. In typical Airborne style, that did not stop him breaking out of the hospital to join in the celebrations and have a few drinks.

*Please note this episode may contain some explicit language / content, parental guidance advised.*