Andrew Whitmarsh from The D-Day Story with installers from Stonerite, Tommy Fletcher and Bill Sharpe
On Monday 29 April, the new bricks carrying the name and the unit they served in were carefully added, taking the number of World War II veterans honoured on the wall to over 600.
Among the additions are John Roberts and Stan Ford, two surviving Portsmouth veterans who served in the Royal Navy and will join the national D-Day commemorations in the city on 5 June.
The memorial wall is located next to and managed by The D-Day Story museum in Southsea Common, run by Portsmouth City Council.
A museum spokesperson said: “The memorial wall is a way for families to commemorate those who were involved in the D-Day landing and Normandy campaign. Including those added today, the wall now has 624 names of veterans, some who are still alive today.
“As well has honouring those who served, the memorial wall is also an important way of raising money for the Portsmouth D-Day Museum Trust, the charity that supports the work of The D-Day Story museum.”
Further names will be added over the next month, meaning there will be over 700 veterans on the memorial wall for the 80th anniversary of D-Day on June 6, the day after the Portsmouth events.
The wall has stood since the 1860s and has been used as a memorial wall since 2018.
The bricks are made by Engrave Bricks, based in Liss, and installed by Hilsea company Stonerite.
If you’re interested in adding the name of a loved one, complete the form on The D-Day Story website and make a donation. Applications are open to anyone who participated in or supported D-Day and the Normandy campaign, either at home or abroad. Please note that new entries won’t be able to be installed in time for the 80th anniversary.
