BY restoring wartime photographs, a man from Worton is raising money for the Royal British Legion.

Terry Nicholls started restoring wartime photos last year to mark the 100 years since the First World War, with one photograph appearing in a recent edition of the Gazette & Herald.

Mr Nicholls said: “I started doing this because people were getting photos out and I thought it was such a shame about the condition, so I got together with Robin Heatley, the social secretary of the RBL in Seend, to get some publicity and to explain what I did.”

Mr Nicholls also restored pictures of his family who had been involved in the war, with his father Hugh Albert Ernest Nicholls and his uncle Walter Nicholls both being part of the services.

“My uncle and father both received Distinguished Service Orders (DSO), my family were always talking about it. My father went by boat to Singapore to be part of the spotlight team. It wasn’t long before the Japanese invaded and he was put in a POW camp in Burma and put to labour to build the bridge over the River Kwai. He kept a diary, which was very dangerous to do as they were searched regularly,” said Mr Nicholls.

Since restoring photographs, Mr Nicholls found and fixed a photo of his uncle Walter with his crew mates of the HMS Norfolk reading a Gazette & Herald in 1933.

“People just don’t know how to restore pictures. One lady was so pleased that I could do it that she hung it on her wall and donated £20 to the Royal British Legion. I really enjoy doing it. Not that many people have come to me yet, I was surprised by the response,” he said. Mr Nicholls decided to donate any proceeds from restoring the photographs to the RBL after seeing the work it does.

“I worked for the Citizens Advice Bureau and part of the office was the RBL. I saw their work and I was very impressed, it is a very good cause. Anything I do will go towards the RBL. The photos doesn’t necessarily have to be army pictures but that is the direction I am aiming for,” added Mr Nicholls.

If anyone has any wartime pictures they would like to have restored, Mr Nicholls can be contacted by emailing telnix@yahoo.co.uk or by calling 07518 514545.