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One of the last survivors to be evacuated from the beaches of Dunkirk has died.

Second World War veteran Alfred Spooner passed away after a short illness at the age of 99, at the Royal Stoke University Hospital, surrounded by his family.

Alfred served with the 56th (Highland) Medium Regiment at Dunkirk. He was one of the men on the beaches bombed by the German Luftwaffe, as they waited to be rescued in 1940.

The British Army had been trapped against the sea by the Nazis. However, thanks to the efforts of the Royal Navy, the RAF, and many civilian sailors, over 338,000 soldiers – including Alfred – were rescued by a hastily assembled fleet of more than 800 boats.

Last year, Alfred’s memories of Dunkirk were evoked when he was taken by The Sentinel to see the Christopher Nolan movie Dunkirk. At the end of the film, cinema-goers – many of them with tears in their eyes – queued up to shake Alfred’s hand.

Speaking at the time, he said: “In real life, there were four or five Stukas bombing the beach at any one time and it didn’t let up.

“You just did what you could to survive. I hid in the sand dunes and we dug holes in the beach to take cover in, to avoid the blast. Some people were unlucky and a bomb fell into their holes.”

Alfred, of Brown Edge, spent three days on the beach before he escaped on board the minesweeper HMS Salamander – and returned home to his fiancee Phyllis Proctor, who he married in 1940.

Alfred worked as a bus conductor before the war, but was later employed in the fitting shop at Florence Colliery. He then worked as a builder and for a time as a lorry driver, before returning to building.

Alf and Phyllis had four children, five grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

Alf’s daughter Valerie Hall, aged 58, of Milton, said: “Dad married mum on December 26, 1940. He’d first seen her on a bus when she was 17 and knew that she was, ‘the girl he wanted to marry’.

“Mum died on July 4, 2000, they would have been married for 60 years that Christmas. He loved Mum so much, and it was very hard for him at first after she died, aged 78.

“He was the sixth child of 11, and grew up near Caverswall. He remembered the miners strike of 1926, and his mum used to bake bread for the miners each week, getting a bucket of coal in return.

“He left school at 14 and got a job helping his dad, who was a builder, until he was 18 when he applied for a conductor’s badge with Beresford’s Bus company. He worked there until war broke out.

“He enjoyed watching football, and Moto GP motorbike races, but cricket was his real passion. I used to watch the Sunday John Player league with him on the TV when I was growing up.

“He was passionate about keeping his mind active and everyday he would do the crossword, code word and mental arithmetic puzzles in the paper. He loved to watch Countdown – and was quicker than me at getting the answers.

“He was determined to get the most out of life, still going on holidays until very recently, pretty much organising these for himself – including going back to Dunkirk on the 75th anniversary.”

Val added: “He was a wonderful Dad, always supportive, kind and generous. He adored Mum and missed her to the day he died. He instilled a strong work ethic in us all, both Dad and Mum made us believe that there wasn't anything we couldn't achieve as long as we worked hard. He was extremely proud of all of his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. His motto was always ‘life’s for living’.”

Alfred’s funeral takes place on Friday, June 22, at 11.30am at Carmountside Crematorium. His family have asked for donations for Cancer Research UK and Help For Heroes.