Blind veteran from Bedford to march at The Cenotaph for the first time on Remembrance Sunday

A blind veteran from Bedford has spoken of his joy as he prepares to march at The Cenotaph in London this Remembrance Sunday.

Mike Warren - who joined the Royal Marines in 1971 - will be marching with more than 30 other blind veterans supported by Blind Veterans UK

The 66-year-old lost his sight much later in life due to macular degeneration. Fortunately, he found out about the national charity for vision-impaired ex-service men and women and started receiving support in 2019.

He said: “My sight has gradually declined over the years since I was diagnosed. You start off thinking ‘this will be OK’ but gradually it affects your day-to-day living and you have to adapt. I have lost my central vision, so reading and facial recognition is impossible.

"Blind Veterans UK have been amazingly good as an organisation. In the first six months of joining, I had a visit from my community support worker. They did a really good assessment of me in my home of the things I could and couldn’t do. After this, I was given equipment to help me.

“I like cooking, so having talking scales are amazingly useful. Another favourite of mine is the liquid level indicator, because without it, you end up with half a cup of tea or tea all over the worktop. So, it’s one of those really simple things that made a real difference.”

And of joining fellow blind veterans this Remembrance Sunday, Mike said: “I never thought I’d get the opportunity to march at The Cenotaph so it’s a real joy to go for the first time.

"On Remembrance Sunday, I will be remembering my grandfather who was in the Royal Engineers in the First World War, won the military medal and was badly injured.

"I will also be remembering one of my best friends who died in the Deal barracks bombing in 1989.”