King's 'pleasure' at meeting 104-year-old veteran

King Charles has expressed his "great pleasure" in being reunited with a 104-year-old Burma Star veteran during a visit to the Isle of Man.

The King met James Fenton during the closing stages of his first trip to the island as the reigning monarch.

Fenton last met His Majesty after attending the Royal British Legion's national service to mark the 80th anniversary of Victory over Japan Day in August last year.

When asked how he was by Fenton, he said he was "not too bad", adding: "But I don't know how you do it, it's bad enough at my age, but yours…"

In reply Fenton said "we just have to keep going", which prompted the King to reply: "Well it's terrible because bits keep dropping off, but anyway there we are."

During their last encounter, the veteran had urged the monarch to visit his home.

During a whistlestop tour of the island on Tuesday, the King - who holds the title Lord of Mann - delivered an address to the Manx parliament, Tynwald, attended a garden party at Government House and took a trip on the island's famous horse tram to mark the 150th anniversary of the service.

In his final engagement of the visit, the King met several veterans, including Fenton, at the Port Soderick headquarters of the charity Heroes on the Water.

Holding the centenarian's hand throughout the conversation, the monarch reminisced about attending Burma Star reunions several decades before, describing them as "most wonderful".

Fenton, who fought with the Royal Artillery in Burma during World War Two, grew up in Lancashire but moved to the Isle of Man in the 1980s.

The Burma Campaign was a series of battles fought between December 1941 and September 1945, concluding after the surrender of Japan to the Allied forces.

Commenting on the small number of surviving veterans of the campaign, the King said: "But you must be nearly the last, because I remember going to the Burma Star reunions in the Albert Hall with my great uncle Lord Mountbatten, I mean 50 years ago.

"I was patron of the Chindits Association for years, but they're nearly all gone now sadly.

"Anyway, thank God you're still there."

Fenton said he hoped the monarch "can believe just how delighted I am" about the visit, to which the King replied: "It's a very special moment for me, you make us very proud."

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