On 5 February 1920 172258 Lieutenant Keith Foster ‘Dinger’ Bell as born in Bromley, Kent (Bromley became part of the London Borough of Bromley in 1965).

On February 15, 1941 Keith got an emergency commission in The Royal Sussex Regiment.

Between 18 and 30 August 1943 Keith successfully completed his parachute course, following which he was assigned as officer commanding of 8 Platoon, C Company, 11th Parachute Battalion.

On Monday September 18 1944, Keith, with half of his platoon, flew to Holland in Dakota 42-100896. Between the villages of Rhenen and Wageningen in Holland his aircraft was shot down. When the green light came on Keith managed to jump. As he descended he saw the now blazing Dakota turn over and felt that perhaps one or two others may have been able to jump clear. Lieutenant Bell led the men out of the aircraft being swiftly despatched by Sergeant Bolland. A total of eight men from the Platoon were killed, along with three of the American aircrew.

Eventually, with the help of resistance fighters from Wageningen, Keith and his people managed to reach the British troops in Wolfheze. From Wolfheze, Keith eventually ended up in the vicinity of the old church in Oosterbeek.

After the war, Keith wrote in a letter to one of his men:

“On Thursday September 21, 1944, Major Guy Blacklidge and I were sharing a slit trench North of the Old Church when a tank attack came in. After some heavy shelling Major Dickie Lonsdale came to tell us to withdraw to the church. We went over the road and back to the church. Again we shared a slit trench and that was the last I saw of him. Shortly after that I went across the road and joined Captain John Douglas along with Lieutenant Billy Buckhurst and Lieutenant Peter Grose. We then were attacked by tanks and Captain Douglas and I went through the trees to see if we could attack the tanks with hand grenades…..How Stupid! There was a shell that hit the trees and Captain Douglas was no more than five feet away and instantly killed. I was hit in the arm and brought to the Ter Horst family house”.

Keith was taken prisoner of war and send to Oflag IX-A/Z in Rotenburg an der Fulda in Germany. There he got his POW number 2179.

Keith died on May 25, 2005, at the age of 85 in Aventura Hospital, Miami, Florida, USA.