Queen Camilla has shared a sweet moment with the D-Day veteran who moved her to tears with his tragic tale of how he lost his best friend on the beaches of Normandy.
Tears welled up in the Queen's eyes as former Royal Navy serviceman Eric Bateman recalled his experience on Utah beach - while King Charles also appeared visibly moved.
Speaking to him after the event,Camilla complimented him on how 'smart and young' he was looking,which he jokingly attributed to his wife helping him 'keep fit'.
As the pair touchingly spoke about Mr Bateman's memories from that fateful day.
Mr Bateman,who served on the warship HMS Erebus,described how you could 'walk across the Channel' because there were so many boats involved in the invasion.
And paying tribute to his fallen comrades,he said: 'So many men and women,including my dear friend Fred,joined up with me but unfortunately never made it.'
Charles and Camilla joined the Prince of Wales,leading UK politicians and veterans at a major event in Portsmouth,where the King gave his first public speech since being diagnosed with cancer.
He told the crowd: 'The stories of courage,resilience and solidarity we have heard today and throughout our lives cannot fail to move us,to inspire us and to remind us of what we owe to that great wartime generation.'
Parachutists wearing replica WWII-era paratrooper attire check their equipment prior to their jump from a Lockheed C-130 Hercules aircraft in Normandy today
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