A WAR veteran from Kirksanton who sustained life changing injuries in Iraq has vowed to raise £1m for ex-service men and women in need.

Hannah Campbell, 31, had to claw her way through piles of rubble when the Basra camp she was guarding was bombed.


Life would never be the same again

The former corporal has rebuilt her life despite having her left leg amputated and suffering a post traumatic stress disorder attack while appearing on the Bear Grylls TV show, The Island .


Charity work

Now a passionate campaigner for the armed forces, Miss Campbell is also the patron of the Veterans' Foundation and is using the 100th anniversary of the Somme to launch a new fund raising lottery.

She said: "It seems fitting that whilst we remember and respect those who gave so much for our country, we also recognise the thousands of veterans that need help and support once they make the transition to civilian life.

"That’s what the projection on the White Cliffs of Dover is all about.

"I’m passionate about highlighting and supporting the many different challenges facing our ex-service men and women- challenges which last a lifetime."

The mother-of-two and former Millom School pupil will use the memorial to project hard-hitting photos of British veterans in need in a bid to raise awareness for the new Veterans' Lottery.

What is the Veterans' Lottery

It will provide funding to projects tackling homelessness, poverty and mental health as well as supporting children who have lost parents serving in the armed forces.

It costs £10 a month to play, with prizes of up-to £5,000 and a rollover jackpot which can reach £75,000.


The Somme fact file:

It began on Friday July 1, 1916

More than 19,240 men were killed in the first 24-hours of the battle as they fought the Germans under General Haig's command.

More than one million soldiers were killed, missing, or wounded on both sides by the time it finished on 18 November 1916.

13 British Army divisions and six French divisions launched an attack on six German divisions.

Before the first advance, the British had fired 1,738,000 shells.

It ended November 18, 1916


An amazing fact of the Somme

A soldier shot during the Battle survived when the bullet hit a spoon and a bible he carried in his jacket pocket.

Henry Cooper, from Manchester, was 20 when he was hit in the chest during the battle in 1916.

Mr Cooper returned to the UK and spent months in hospital in Southampton recovering from the gunshot wound.

Furness on the eve of the Somme

Ulverston ready to remember the Somme