Denis Kelly describes the conditions endured by the troops in return for seven shillings a week.

He recalls being surrounded by the bodies of dead men and horses. Exploding shells filled the trenches with clay smothering men buried by the earth.

The supply of rations and reinforcements to the front lines was often disrupted by shell fire, which meant that the soldiers went hungry. Cigarettes, however, were plentiful.

An interview with First World War veteran Denis Kelly for the series 'Looking West' broadcast 5 June 1981.

'Looking West' was a series presented by Jim Fahy looking at people, places and events in the west of Ireland.

The photograph accompanying this clip shows British soldiers in a front line trench with a Lewis light machine gun.
Courtesy Library of Congress LC_B2_4683_6

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