More than 80 veterans who played a vital but secret role in the efforts to end the Second World War gathered to mark the 80th anniversary of the start of the conflict.

Scores of former staff were reunited at Bletchley Park on Sunday where they had helped crack German codes to unravel Nazi intelligence.

The sprawling site in Buckinghamshire, where the German Enigma cipher was broken, welcomed the former workers, who are now well into their 90s.

Betty Webb, who joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service in 1941 - which was the women's branch of the British Army at the time - said it was "immensely important" for her to attend the reunion.

The 96-year-old worked in the estate's mansion and was involved in registering the signals - made up of figures and letters - which had come in.

Asked if she has a favourite memory of her four years at Bletchley, Ms Webb said: "No, it is all favourite. For me it was all great, because it was a mix of people that I wouldn't have found unless I'd gone to university. It was an education for me."

With September 1 marking the day Nazi Germany invaded Poland, a move which triggered Britain to declare war two days later, Ms Webb said she never had any idea she would play such a pivotal role in the conflict.