Jay Hawkins’ project has taken him up and down the UK, covering nearly 30,000 miles and interviewing each wartime hero he meets.

He’s been documenting his experience on the Instagram page Lee_Enfield_Project, which has 14,200 followers – including people from as far as Brazil.

Having got into history from his dad when he took him to Duxford as a teenager, the St Ives man’s interest picked up again after Covid-19. 

“The passion has always been there,” the St Ives resident said, adding that he attended a rifle-signing event with a World War II veteran after lockdown. 

“It all started from there, in 2020, and I promised myself that I would go to any lengths to meet Britain’s last-surviving World War II veterans.”

Whilst in their company, the 27-year-old – who often has to spend months liaising with care homes to organise the visit – asks them to sign his 1940-dated Lee Enfield rifle.

“It looked quite weird to have a wooden rifle with just one signature and, after 20 had signed it, I thought I would contact a museum to see if they would be interested in displaying it.”

Fast forward several years and Mr Hawkins has met 130 World War II veterans and counting – all of whom have signed the rifle. 

“Two of them recently were 106 and 108 years old,” he said, adding that his trips have taken him as far as Northumberland, Scotland, Aberdeen and the Isle of Wight. 

“I’m a self-employed painter and decorator by trade, so it’s been cool to get to explore parts of the country that I otherwise wouldn’t have.”

While Mr Hawkins said many veterans he meets are “shocked that the younger generation is still interested”, his aim is to “spread the importance of these heroes before it’s too late.”

“It’s not a numbers game – it’s more about telling the veterans’ story for the first time and spreading awareness of it,” he said, adding that he would like to write a book about the stories he’s been told.

“I’ll keep it going until there’s no more room on the rifle or there are no more veterans left.”

(Image: Jay Hawkins)