Sergeant Noel Connolly
Royal Marine Sergeant Noel Connolly saved the lives of 30 of his comrades when he prevented a Taliban suicide bomber from detonating 154lb of explosives. The 41-year-old was stationed in an abandoned school in the Kandahar province of Afghanistan when his unit were warned a suicide bomber was being sent to kill them.
The dad-of-two was standing inside the school when he saw a man on a motorbike heading towards him. "I told all my lads to expect a bomber," Noel says. "The motorcyclist looked lost. He turned the bike around up the track and came back.
"I grabbed two lads and went to intercept him. I ordered 'Stop' in Pashtu. He stalled the bike and fell off, then started pushing it away from us. Then he straddled it and faced us."
When Noel got 10 metres away from the man, he heard a loud crack and spotted a toggle switch attached to the handlebars to detonate explosives. He knew he was face to face with the bomber. "As soon as he went for the toggle again I rushed him," says Noel, who has also served in Iraq, the Congo and Northern Ireland. "I grabbed him by the front of his shirt and hauled him off." The motorbike's frame was found to contain the large quantity of explosives. The bomber was handed to the police and jailed for 18 years.
But modest Noel, who is from Manchester and joined the Marines 22 years ago, plays down the achievement. "I'm not brave," he says. "Someone had to stop him. This was very much a collective effort by Lima Company." He didn't even tell his family about the incident until his sister Breda wrote to him to ask whether a story about an "unnamed soldier" had anything to do with him.
"Yes," he replied. "But don't tell mum." Breda says, "Noel is a true Mancunian. We are so proud of him. He is a Royal Marine through and through, and is dedicated to the job. It truly is terrifying what they have to face on a daily basis."
Noel - who lives in the Plymouth area with his wife Lorraine and their two daughters - was awarded a Military Cross for his "lifesaving act of gallantry", although it is his view that it belongs to Lima Company and 42 Royal Marines Commando as a whole.
They formed part of the 3 Commando Brigade Task Force that was deployed to Afghanistan in the autumn of 2008. Their tour lasted until March this year. Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth paid tribute to the outstanding bravery of the troops, saying, "The servicemen and women are not just the pride of the British armed forces, they are the pride of Britain."