POPPIES on lapels will be worn with added pride this year on the centenary of the First World War as the Royal British Legion launched their annual appeal on Saturday.

In the former home of repatriations the drive will be stonger than ever to raise vital funds for veterans, bereaved familes and injured servicemen 100 years on from the beginning of the conflict which claimed 16 million lives.

Royal Wootton Bassett launched their appeal with a gift from 64-year-old Vera Drewett, who spent five months crocheting a chain of 100 poppies to decorate the High Street war memorial.

Vera said: “I was off work for a while with a bad leg and just started putting it together in my spare time.

“I wanted to make 100 of them because obviously it is 100 years this year. I made it to 100 and there are a few more for luck.

“The nickname my grandchildren call me is ‘Knit-knit’, because I do do a lot of knitting. I have been doing it since I was about seven or eight. There wasn’t much to do when I was young so I got started knitting.

“I first had the idea last year and thought I would do 100 for this year. I thought I would make 20 each month in the run-up, and I would do about 10 in each sitting, with each one taking me about 20 minutes to do.

“I wanted to do this because my father, father-in-law and mother-in-law were all in the war. My son-in-law Simon used to be in the RAF but has now gone over to the Canadian air force. I’ve not really got involved in the past but the poppies have always been a passion of mine.”

Brian Kingscote, president of the Royal Wootton Bassett branch of the British Legion, said interest in the appeal is already greater than in previous years.

“Because it is the centenary this year it has definitely got a lot more attention and it seems to have gone a bit manic,” he said. “I have ony just got a call out for five extra wreaths, and wooden crosses are proving very popular this year. We got more than £18,000 last year and £15,000 the year before, so our averages are on track for £20,000 this year which would be fantastic.

“The crochet poppies are beautiful and Vera has done an amazing job. They will be on sale in exchange for a donation from Wednesday of this week.”

The Royal British Legion will also be in attendance at the annual Lydiard Park Remembrance Day in the Walled Garden, with thousands of wooden crosses to be planted ahead of the event on November 7. They will also be selling poppies in Sainsbury’s from October 29 to November 8.

Bill Baldwin, store manager at Royal Wootton Bassett Sainsbury’s, said: “The Royal Wootton Bassett community has been so supportive in the past. This year we commemorate the start of the First World War and our 20th year of partnership with The Royal British Legion. I’d like to thank our customers for their kind donations so far and we look forward to all the activity we have planned to support this fantastic cause.”