A WIDOW whose husband played his part in the Suez crisis 50 years ago has finally received a medal recognising his efforts.

Dennis Luckhurst was serving as an apprentice blacksmith/engineer near Inverness in the early Fifties, before joining up for three years' national service soon after his marriage to June in 1952.

"He was in the RAF, but was seconded to the Royal Engineers because of his background," said Mrs Luckhurst. "He was sent to the Suez canal zone from 1953-54 when the trouble was building up and was away for 18 months."

Mrs Luckhurst, who lives at Ingleton, between Darlington and Staindrop, said she had always felt a little bit put out that medals had been handed out to those involved in later conflicts, sometimes almost instantly, while there had been nothing in half a century for those who served during the Suez crisis.

But when she read in the D&S Times' sister paper, The Northern Echo, that the medals had finally been struck, she decided to apply.

"That was six months ago, which led me to contact the British Legion for advice," she said. "They gave me an address to apply to, so off I wrote."

Having kept his papers, army number and the records of her husband's Suez service, Mrs Luckhurst also had to send their marriage certificate and his will to show that she was eligible to receive the medal.

However, the award, which has his name engraved around the milled edge, came too late for her husband, a former Glaxo engineer and keen birdwatcher, who died while enjoying his hobby on the moors in 1997.

"He never said much about his time out there, but he was very young," said Mrs Luckhurst. "I am happy to receive the medal after all these years, but it would have been nice if it had been struck much earlier and he could have had it when he was alive."