Portland woman reveals her dad's special bond with Prince Philip

Aboard HMS Whelp, it was the morning duty of naval quartermaster Cyril ‘Jim’ Rankine, who fought in Dunkirk, to tell his First Lieutenant Prince Philip to 'rise and shine'.

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Linda Reynolds, 70, said after the recent death of the Duke of Edinburgh on April 9 – memories of her war-hero father came flooding back, including the special friendship he had with the Duke.

The crew on HMS Whelp. Prince Philip and Jim are circled

Mrs Reynolds, of Delhi Lane, said: “He joined naval training when he was 18 and later came to Portland Naval Base - serving on HMS Icarus at the start of the war.

“During the war, my dad came back from Dunkirk and served on Arctic convoys and then later sent off to join HMS Whelp - the destroyer supporting air raids on Japanese Shore installations where Philip was second in command.

“One of my dad’s duties was to wake Prince Philip up. My dad used to tell me and my brothers Ken and Graham, how brilliant Philip was keeping up morale of all the comrades on the ship, and always lent a hand if needed.”

The letter Prince Philip wrote to Jim for the 50th anniversary of VE Day in 1995

Despite his early morning commitments, Jim was not able to celebrate VE Day, in May 1945 because he was badly injured and caught tuberculosis - spending 18 months in Australia to get life-saving treatment.

"The treatment wasn't available in post-war Britain, but when he came back he was better than ever," said Mrs Reynolds.

Jim was discharged from the Navy in 1946 where he began his life with wife Mary and his three children, while his morning companion took the path of marrying Queen Elizabeth II.

However, due to ill health the former naval quartermaster was not able to celebrate the 50th anniversary of VE Day in 1995.

Then, out of the blue, Jim received a letter from Prince Philip.

In the letter, the Duke of Edinburgh wrote: "I'm sure your memories of our time together in HMS Whelp are still lively as ever. I know I will never forget those days in Tokyo Bay when the Japanese signed the Surrender. It is people like you who are being remembered."

Jim spent the final days of his life in St David's in London - a home for ex-soldiers, sailors and airmen, where he made around 124,300 poppies.

He died on April 4, 1998 - aged 78.

During his time at St David's Home, in Ealing, Jim made around 124,300 remembrance poppies