08/05/2025
What an incredible VE Day story - I just had to share this!
Remembering all our heroes and heroines 80 years on. 🇬🇧
She grieved a war hero, dead at Dunkirk 💔
Five years later, he came home 😮
At first glance, this is just another joyful VE Day photo: Connie Nicholls, smiling as she decorates her Nottingham doorstep.
But behind that smile is a story of heartbreak, heroism, and one incredible twist of fate...
In 1940, Connie's husband Harry was declared killed at Dunkirk. Her life turned upside down. A tragic inclusion of his death in the newspapers read: "Harry, killed in action, May 28th. Brokenhearted wife and baby."
Then, Connie received his posthumous Victoria Cross from the King, one of the first of the war, who said: “I only wish it was your husband I was giving the VC.”
But Harry's story still wasn't over.
Then, months later, a fateful telegram arrived. Connie only read the first six words:
👉 “DEAR CON – HARRY ALIVE AND WELL”
Harry hadn't died at Dunkirk after all. He'd been captured as a prisoner of war. Connie was shocked, but she'd never lost hope. "I always had the feeling Harry might be alive." She told her daughter, "Daddy is safe."
Separated for four and a half years, the couple were finally reunited on VE Day — when another telegram as delivered:
👉 “Arrived safely. See you soon, Harry.”
Her neighbours spelled out “Victoria Cross” in string across the street. For Connie, it wasn’t just the end of a war — it was the end of five years of loss, hope, and waiting.
Delve into the stories behind the smiles with our special VE Day photo collection. Could your relative's celebrations appear in print? ➡️ https://bit.ly/4cTWYaw
