BRAVE former Royal Navy man Jim Booth is renowned for his remarkable exploits during the Second World War. Perhaps less well known is his role as a stalwart of Wellington Choral Society and Taunton Choral Society, with whom he has been singing for many years and where he is a much respected tenor.

Now 97, Jim’s determination shone through when, in November last year, he was the victim of a vicious attack with a claw hammer. The assailant was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment. Despite multiple skull fractures and lacerations of his head and arms, he pulled through. It is typical of Jim that he played down the horrific incident, saying ‘worse things happen at sea’.

He went on to astound Wellington Choral Society by singing at its performance of the Messiah in March this year. Latterly, Jim has been rehearsing with the choir ready for its Concert of Remembrance on Saturday. Furthermore, despite recently being fitted with a pacemaker, Jim is determined to take his place with the tenors at the choral society’s concert.

As a Sub-Lieutenant in the Royal Navy, Jim Booth participated in one of the most secret operations of the Normandy landings in June 1944. He was a member of the crew of five in a mini-submarine which was towed part of the way to Normandy before motoring close to Sword Beach and submerging. When H-Hour came the submarine was to surface and use a beacon to guide troops to the correct part of the beach.

After submerging on June 4 in expectation of an Allied invasion the next day, the delay caused by bad weather left Jim’s crew dangerously short of oxygen. However, they managed to hold out and surfaced on June 6, successfully guiding the landing craft into Sword Beach. He was awarded the Croix de Guerre by France for his outstanding gallantry. Jim went on to carry out further hazardous reconnaissance work along the coast of Burma and later served in command of a minesweeper clearing mines in the Mediterranean.

On Saturday, Wellington Choral Society will be honouring those who sacrificed their lives or were wounded physically or mentally or both during the Great War and in the conflicts endured over the last 100 years since the end of that war.

A programme of choral singing, poetry readings and organ music promises to be both poignant and uplifting. The concert is at St John’s Church Wellington, and begins at 7.30pm.

Tickets priced £12 (under-18s free) are available from Odette’s Tearoom 27 High Street, Wellington, online at wellingtonchoral

society.org.uk or on the door.

A retiring collection will be held for SSAFA Somerset, the Armed Forces charity.