Hundreds of people from across the UK have attended the funeral of a Penge War Veteran they never knew. Harold Jellicoe Percival, known as Coe, died in a Lancashire nursing home last month, age 99, with no children and having never married.
With few close family members the funeral home organising the service put an advert in a local newspaper appealing for people to attend. The appeal took off on social media and led to hundreds of people attending the ceremony in Lancashire.
Mr Percival, who served as RAF ground crew during the Second World War and had been involved with 617 squadron, the famous crews who carried out the ‘dambusters’ raids in May 1943.
Over 500 people attended the service on Remembrance Day, with 400 left in the rain as the chapel reached its 100 person capacity. The enormous numbers who attended show the support and respect that the public still shows for those who served in our armed forces. Relatives of Mr Percival thanked those who attended, "We are overwhelmed. This shows how great the British public are."