The Taxi Charity for Military Veterans is deeply saddened to announce the passing of Stuart Roy Cadman, a heroic D-Day veteran and one of the last surviving members of No. 3 Commando who was known to all as Roy.
Roy passed away peacefully on Tuesday 3 June 2025 at the Royal Hospital Chelsea, aged 102.
Born in the East End of London, Roy’s life was one of extraordinary service and courage. He enlisted underage into the British Army at just 17 and went on to fight in some of the most significant campaigns of the Second World War including North Africa, the invasion of Sicily, and the historic D-Day landings.
On 6 June 1944, Roy landed on Sword Beach as part of the force sent to relieve Major John Howard’s 6th Airborne Division, who had secured the strategically vital Pegasus Bridge just hours before. His bravery continued throughout the campaign in Western Europe, serving as a sniper during the perilous Rhine crossings and later participating in the ill-fated Operation Market Garden.
After the war, Roy continued his military journey with the TA Parachute Regiment, completing an astonishing 168 parachute jumps and rising to the rank of Company Sergeant Major.
In civilian life, he worked as an electrician on Concorde a testament to his skill and precision and remained a loyal friend and comrade to fellow veterans, especially his dear friend and fellow No. 3 Commando, Fred Walker. Roy was a devoted family man, a proud father of three and grandfather to seven. He will be laid to rest beside his beloved wife, Doris, in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey.
Each year, Roy returned to Normandy to honour those who never came home, always carrying the memory of his fallen comrades. Many years he travelled to Normandy for the D Day commemorations with a group of veterans in black taxis, courtesy of the Taxi Charity for Military Veterans.
London Cab Driver and Taxi Charity volunteer Dave Hemstead, who drove Roy to commemorative events said, “Roy landed at Sword Beach and helped relieve the Ox and Bucks Light Infantry who had gone in at midnight on the 5 June to secure the bridges over the Caen canal and the Orne river. You could be with him all day talking about his exploits during the war, from North Africa to Sicily to Western Europe. I particularly enjoyed sitting with him outside Café Gondree, by Pegasus Bridge in Normandy, seeing him interact with hundreds of people over the years, who wanted to hear his story and shake his hand. He was a larger-than-life character and everyone loved him.”
Dick Goodwin, Vice President of the Taxi Charity, added: “His friend Freddie Walker, also of No. 3 Commando, always said, ‘All we needed was a platoon of Roy’s on D-Day and the war would have finished sooner.’”
We salute you, Roy, a true hero, a cherished friend, and an irreplaceable part of our nation’s history.
Rest in Peace.
To find out more about the support the Taxi Charity offers to veterans or to donate visit www.taxicharity.org
About Café Gondree
Café Gondree was the first liberated building on mainland Europe on D Day on 6 June 1944. Arlette Gondree was 4 years old when the allied invasion commenced at 12 minutes past midnight with the arrival of 3 gliders landing on the canal bank opposite Café Gondree. Arlette watched the airborne troops assault the German sentries and take the bridge over the canal. Her family tended the wounded, and the café was used as a first aid post.
81 years have passed, and the last surviving World War two veterans returned to Normandy with the help of the Taxi Charity for military veterans and visit the Café Gondree to pay their respects and were met as always with a warm welcome from Arlette and the staff at the café Grandee.
Many hundreds of veterans returned to the area from 1946 to pay homage to those that had fallen on and after the 6 June 1944 and always visited the Café Gondree. Many famous film stars of the day who had assaulted the beaches returned with their old associations and the Café Gondree was the focal point and meeting place, as all the photographs in the café will testify to this.
Arlette had a special place in her heart for those that came to help liberate Europe and for the Taxi Charity for enabling those veterans to visit safely and be cared for while on these trips.
As the numbers became fewer the task to return the veterans became more important and with the assistance of carers the Taxi Charity can keep the trips going and the veterans happy.
Arlette has become a firm friend of the taxi charity and wherever possible attends the charity’s events.
About the Taxi Charity for Military Veterans
The Taxi Charity is run by volunteer London black taxi drivers and has been supporting thousands of veterans since 1948. It is the only Forces charity that focuses on providing fun and entertainment and arranges free trips (for veterans from all conflicts) to the Netherlands and France for acts of commemoration and days out to museums, concerts, or social events across the UK.
The charity received the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service in 2021 and celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2023, a remarkable milestone for a small, niche charity peopled by enthusiastic volunteers.
In 2024, the charity took veterans to Normandy for the 80th anniversary of D-Day and commemorated the 80th anniversary of Operation Market Garden in the Netherlands in September.
In May 2025, the charity returned to the Netherlands for the 80th anniversary of Dutch Liberation and returned to Normandy in June for the 81st anniversary of D Day.
To fund and facilitate their work, the charity is wholly reliant on donations, grants and sponsorship.
