TWO men who struck up a friendship when they fought together in the Second World War have finally found each other after a 60-year search.

Former Kendalian Gilly Allan and Oxfordshire man, Ken Trueman, have been catching up on decades of missing news after The Westmorland Gazette told how Kendal man Alex McLean was trying to reunite the pals after a July trip to London for a special ceremony marking the end of World War Two.

While at the Horse Guards Parade, which was attended by more than 11,000 veterans, Mr McLean was approached by an Oxfordshire man who recognised his Royal British Legion tie. The stranger revealed he had been best friends with Mr Allan who now lives in County Durham - when the pair fought in Burma and had spent the decades following the end of the war hunting for his friend.

By chance, Mr McLean, 83, had been friends with Mr Allan himself and told the Gazette of his hopes to track down his old friend with whom he had also lost contact.

Now, after months of telephone calls and dead-end leads, Mr McLean, of Maude Street, has "struck gold".

"The article generated a huge response. I spoke to so many people who remembered Gilly," said Mr McLean. "Finally I was put in touch with his niece and we tracked him down to a village in the North East."

Mr Trueman, 81, told the Gazette: "I was thrilled to bits to hear from Gilly; it had been 60-odd years. He told me he'd often thought about trying to find me but I beat him to it," said Mr Trueman.

"Unfortunately Gilly isn't well enough to meet in person so we will continue to write and hopefully meet again in the future."