A Scots World War II hero toasted his 107th birthday in style – with a dram and a bowl of porridge.
Jimmy Sinclair – one of Britain’s oldest surviving Desert Rats – revealed his secret to long life was whisky and and oats for breakfast.
Brave Jimmy, who fought at the Siege of Tobruk and the battles of El Alamein and Monte Cassino, refuses to wear medals out of solidarity for the friends he lost.
He was greeted with birthday wishes from as far afield as Australia, France and Germany as he celebrated his big day at home in Kirkcaldy yesterday.
Jimmy’s pal and carer Archie Howie said: “He is a wee bit tired now but he had a great day.
“He has had calls and visits from friends and family and some dignitaries from Fife Council came to wish him well.
“A lot of his presents were whisky so he was happy about that as that is his favourite tipple. He says the whisky and porridge every day keeps him healthy.”
Jimmy Sinclair served as a gunner with the elite Chestnut Troop of the 7th Armoured Division in North Africa. Despite fighting Rommel’s troops in the desert in 1942, he went on to strike up an unlikely friendship with the field marshal’s family after meeting them at a concert in Achen, Germany, years later.
He also receives regular letters and photographs from Camilla, Duchess of Rothesay, whose father was a Desert Rat.
Previously, Jimmy, a widowed father of two and grandfather of three, has recalled the horror of Tobruk, which lasted for 241 days.
He said: “My mate from Falkland got killed at Tobruk. We were under fire from German 88s.
"We were firing 25 pounders – it lasted a long time. We came under fire from Stukas. They came over every day at dinner time but they got shot down because they were that slow at taking off.”
He has said he “feels sorry for the fallen” on both sides and refuses to think of the average German soldier as being the enemy.
He added: “It’s a pity it all happened. We didn’t treat the Germans as enemies.
"They were combatants in battle. Most of them didn’t want to be there either.”
