The late-night escape in 1945 was "just one of those things that had to be done" during World War II, according to Jack.

After spending three years as a PoW, Jack joined up with a Welsh guardsman and made a daring dash for freedom.

"We did not see ourselves as being brave ... it was just part of the job," Jack said. "The two of us got away one night during an air raid when everyone else was trying to protect themselves.

"We went up into the hills and then escaped to Hungary, where we joined a Russian medical unit and stayed until the end of the war."

The escape ended a traumatic time for Jack, who was first reported missing at El Alamein on July 17, 1942.

He was a PoW without the protection of the Red Cross in North Africa before he was taken to Italy and then Germany.

Despite the hardships, Jack and his fellow prisoners maintained a positive attitude.

"It was always in the back of our minds that we would be free one day ... we just didn't have a clue when that would be," he said.