Dame Vera Lynn (born Vera Margaret Welch on 20th March 1917 in East Ham, Essex) is known as to us all as “the Forces’ Sweetheart”. She married her colleague from Ambrose’s Orchestra, Harry Lewis who played clarinet and saxophone in 1941. They have a daughter Virginia. Harry sadly passed away in 1998. Dame Vera has lived in Ditchling since the early 1960’s with her daughter now next door.
She began performing publicly at the age of seven and took her maternal grandmother’s maiden name, Lynn, as her stage name aged eleven. Her first radio broadcast, with the Joe Loss Orchestra, was in 1935. At this point she was being featured on records released by dance bands including those of Loss and of Charlie Kunz. In 1937 she moved to the top British dance band Bert Ambrose & his Orchestra. Her 1939 recording of the popular song “We’ll Meet Again”, written by Ross Parker and Hughie Charles, became a huge hit and when, during the “Phoney War”, the Daily Express asked British servicemen to name their favourite musical performers: Vera Lynn came out on top and acquired the title “the Forces’ Sweetheart”.
In 1941, during the darkest days of the Second World War, Lynn began her own radio programme called Sincerely Yours during which she would send messages to British troops serving abroad and perform songs most requested by the soldiers. Vera also visited hospitals to interview new mothers and send personal messages to their husbands overseas. As the war continued she toured Egypt, India, and Burma as part of ENSA, giving outdoor concerts for the troops. A young woman at the time she was not a diva expecting special privileges or comforts. She camped with the troops in some very basic conditions earning their respect and devotion. It was not easy touring in these areas where the men were fighting, it took courage and strength to do what Vera did. For the troops serving far from home, often having been away from family, friends and loved ones for years, Vera became so very special. Through her they knew they were not forgotten and that everyone back home was thinking of them. Her songs gave them hope, laughter, tears and briefly took away the horrors of the war they were embroiled in. They loved her and she loved them in return. In March 1944 she went to Shamshernagar airfield in Bengal to entertain the troops before the Battle of Kohima. Her host and lifelong friend Captain Bernard Holden recalled “her courage and her contribution to morale”. It was announced in 1985 that she would receive the Burma Star for entertaining British guerrilla units in Japanese-occupied Burma.
Due to her experiences during the war Dame Vera has devoted a great deal of her time and energy to charity work connected with ex-servicemen. I can attest to the high esteem she is held in by those who served during the war. As a founder of and member of the organising committee for the RAFA Shoreham Airshow until 2014 during which time Dame Vera was a regular VIP guest the “Old and Bold” veterans loved to meet with her. The mutual respect and love was obvious as they all spent time together reminiscing. Seeing highly decorated servicemen in their 80’s and 90’s become like blushing schoolboys in here presence always made me smile. Her attendance meant so much to them and when the spitfires, hurricanes and the Lancaster flew through there would be tears in her and their eyes. We were very honoured to have a World War one veteran, 2nd Lieutenant Gerald Dixon, in The Shoreham RAFA branch and Dame Vera led the Airshow crowd in singing Happy Birthday to him on his 100th birthday. I will never forget the look of pleasure and pride on his face at the time. To put this in some context for those of us not from the wartime imagine having Elvis, one of the Beatles or Stones, Take That, Beyoncé or whoever your favourite star is singing happy birthday to you and you can image how Gerald felt.
After the war Vera’s version of “Auf Wiederseh’n Sweetheart” released in 1952 became the first record by a British performer to top the charts in the United States, remaining there for a total of nine weeks. She hosted her own variety series on BBC1 in the late 1960s and early 1970s and was a frequent guest on other variety shows. Vera is also notable for being the only artist to have a chart span on the British single and album charts reaching from the chart’s inception to the 21st century – in 1952 having three singles in the first ever singles chart, compiled by New Musical Express, and most recently in 2009, aged 92, having a No. 1 album with We’ll Meet Again – The Very Best of Vera Lynn. Possibly the only artist who can ever stand a chance of beating this is Sir Cliff Richard. She has a brief mention in a song named after her on the Pink Floyd’s album “The Wall”. With a new album due out on 17th March for her 100th Birthday Dame Vera is still entertaining us. The album includes collaborations with Alfie Boe on ‘We’ll Meet Again’, Alexander Armstrong on ‘White Cliffs of Dover’ and Aled Jones on ‘As Time Goes By’.
Dame Vera has a list of awards and honours including the British War Medal 1939–1945 and the Burma Star, an OBE in the 1969 New Year Honours “for services to the Royal Air Forces Association and other charities”, and was advanced to Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 1975 Queen’s Birthday Honours for charitable services. She was made an Officer of the Order of Saint John (OStJ) in 1998 and in 2000 received a special “Spirit of the 20th Century” Award. She was made a Commander of the Order of Orange-Nassau in 1985, and appointed Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour (CH) in the 2016 Queen’s Birthday Honours for services to entertainment and charity.
In 1953 Lynn formed the cerebral palsy charity SOS (The Stars Organisation for Spastics) and became its chairperson. The Vera Lynn Charity Breast Cancer Research Trust was founded in 1976, with Lynn its chairperson and later its president. In 2002 Lynn became president of the cerebral palsy charity The Dame Vera Lynn Trust for Children with Cerebral Palsy and then in 2008 she became patron of the charitable Forces Literary Organisation Worldwide for ALL. In 2010 Lynn became the patron of the Dover War Memorial Project, and also she became patron of the British charity Projects to Support Refugees from Burma/Help 4 Forgotten Allies.
Happy Birthday Dame Vera and thank you.