This piece of mine appears in the Daily Express
THEY were for a long time among the forgotten heroes of the Second World War.
The Bevin Boys was the name given to the 48,000 or so young men aged between 18 and 25 who were conscripted by the government to work down the mines during the period 1943-48.
The part they played in the war effort was not officially honoured until 2007 when the government announced that they would be awarded a Veterans Badge. But this week there was further recognition of their important role when the Countess of Wessex unveiled a memorial, designed by former Bevin Boy Harry Parkes, at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire.
You can read the whole piece here.