TODAY the village of Tyneham is no more than a ghost village: a collection of crumbling cottages scattered around a well-preserved church and schoolhouse. Reached via the descent of a narrow lane that twists and turns, Tyneham comes into view as the land opens up ahead and the chalk hills run into the crystalline waters of Worbarrow Bay. It can be busy when it’s open to the public if the weather happens to be fine; visitors come to explore the shells of former dwellings and the exhibitions in the church and schoolhouse, while others wander down to the sea for a dip. But on quieter days, it’s the silence of the place that one notices first; and the stark Ministry of Defence (MoD) warning signs dotted around the place soon serve as a reminder that this is ‘the village that died for D-Day’.
Because 80 years ago, this corner of southern Dorset was a
