Village turns out to pay tribute to soldier

Sapper Daryn Roy, 28, was blown up by an improvised bomb near Camp Bastion and he died on May 3.

In the following days, his home village of Dipton in County Durham became a shrine, as local people hung banners proclaiming him a national hero.

Pictures of the 21 Engineer Regiment soldier smiling in uniform were made into flags and hung from the local primary school. People stuck messages to the walls of the local pub and flew flags from windows.

Shops shut in the former pit village as hundreds lined the road before his funeral.

Sapper Roy joined the Army later than most and was like an older brother to his comrades, one officer said.

His brother Terry said: "I will always remember him – a true brother, a great friend and a national hero."