A Wiltshire man who spent two-and-a-half decades helping his fellow Second World War servicemen has been recognised by the Queen.

Frank Newhouse will be made an MBE for his voluntary work with the Arnhem 1944 Veterans’ Club after being named in the Queen’s birthday honours list today.

Mr Newhouse, 84, of Eveleigh Road, Wootton Bassett, was just 19 when he first saw action in the Second World War in September 1944.

After only 48 hours in Arnhem, the Netherlands, he was hit in the head by a piece of shrapnel and spent the remainder of the war as a German prisoner.

Mr Newhouse, who served in the 10th Parachute Battalion, said: “It was a parachute drop into the area.

“I was excited, not scared. D-Day was in June and we were all geared up for fighting, but we had to wait another few months so we were raring to go.

“After some serious action I was wounded 48 hours later. It was awful. I was wounded in the head, so I didn’t know much about.”

Mr Newhouse was taken to a prisoner of war camp in nearby Ede, one of many camps he lived in before he was released at the end of the war.

He said: “Conditions were horrible. It was starvation mainly.

“There was a lot of hunger – it was survival food only, that was about it.”

In 1947 Mr Newhouse, who was originally from Yorkshire, settled in Wootton Bassett where he met his wife, Sylvia.

The widower now has three children, eight grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

For the past 25 years Mr Newhouse has acted as a treasurer for the veterans’ club, which helps ex-servicemen by offering advice and financial assistance.

Mr Newhouse also helps to organise an annual reunion for veterans in Arnhem where servicemen reminisce and pay their respects to fallen comrades.

He said: “The veterans’ club is made up of good people.

“They have all gone through the same experience, and it was quite a bad one. We lost a lot of people there.”

He was informed he could be made a Member of the British Empire four weeks ago.

Mr Newhouse said: “I was quite chuffed when I heard. I feel honoured and very proud to be representing our association with an MBE.”

Others recognised by the Queen today include actor Christopher Lee, golfer Nick Faldo and former poet laureate Andrew Motion, who will all be knighted.

Chef Delia Smith is to become a CBE while artist Peter Howson is to be made an Officer of the British Empire.

John Owen, former managing director of Thamesdown Transport, will be made an OBE.

Mr Owen, 63, from Liden, ran the Swindon bus company from 1983 until his retirement in 2006.

He continues to work part-time as chairman of the UK Bus Awards and was recognised for “services to the bus industry”.

Mr Owen, a grandfather-of-one and father-of-three, heard he could be made an Officer of the British Empire about a month ago.

He said: “I was gobsmacked — very surprised indeed but obviously absolutely delighted.”

Mr Owen, who has also been vice chairman of the board of governors at St Joseph’s Catholic College in Ocotal Way for more than 20 years, said he believed he had been named due to a combination of his local and national work in promoting the bus industry.

Referring to Thamesdown Transport, he said: “The operation has grown substantially as the town has grown, but equally the quality of the operation in terms of reliability, investment and in bus frequency has come a long way.

“Actually the award is not about me. I couldn’t have achieved any of the things I have done with Thamesdown Transport or elsewhere without the help and support of he people I have worked with.

“The award is really as much for them as it is for me.”

A co-founder of the Royal International Air Tattoo was honoured for his services to charity.

Tim Prince, 60, from Stroud in Gloucestershire, helped set up the tattoo, which has run at RAF Fairford since 1971.

He will be made an OBE in recognition of the role he played in establishing and supporting the Royal Air Force Charitable Trust, which benefits from the event.

A number of Wiltshire men and women are mentioned in the Queen's Birthday Honours published today. Melkhsam man David Turrell who is head of Sir Bernard Lovell School in Bristol and chairman of of the Kingswood 14-19 Partnership becomes a Commander of the British Empire for his services to local and national education. Alan Hepper from Devizes who works for the Ministry of Defence is made an Order of the British Empire. The same honour goes to Alan Moore from Calne for services to the energy industry and Dr Malcolm Read from Malmesbury who is executive secretary of the Joint Information Systems Committee and is rewarded for his services to higher education. Professor Edward Parry Evans from Chippenham is made a Member of the British Empire for services to environmental science. So to is Dennie Field from Hungerford who is rewarded for services to heraldic art.