Family wins final battle for dead soldier

The spelling of a First World War soldier’s name has been corrected on a village memorial 97 years after he was killed at the age of just 20.

Earlier this year, parish councillors in Shepreth, Cambridgeshire, agreed to have the spelling of Private George Samuel’s name changed from “Samuels” to “Samuel” following a plea from a relative

And a stonemason has now erased the final “s”.

Alison Corfield said the misspelling of her great uncle’s name had caused “great distress” to his parents after the 1914-18 conflict ended.

She said authorities had refused to correct the mistake after the memorial was erected and Pte Samuel’s parents – who lived in Shepreth – had tried to hide the extra “s” by covering it with mud.