Bill joined the RN aged 14 and spent 12 months on the training ship TS Warspite before joining HMS Ganges. https://www.forces.net/news/i-couldnt-speak-french-veteran-whose-normandy-landing-led-marriage https://www.cobseo.org.uk/blog-from-bill-silvester-a-96-year-old-second-world-war-veteran/