how do you go about doing that? I know little about what he did other than he was in recon in holland.

The Arnhem stuff in the news has made me think about him

Try starting here

https://www.gov.uk/get-copy-military-service-records

My dad recently got hold of my great grandad’s WW1 records from the National Archives. Not sure how he did it.

Looks like there is some helpful stuff here: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/help-with-your-research/research-guides/?research-category=second-world-war-research

Also try getting in contact with your local records office, or where the regiment’s records are held.
For more general info on what he may have been doing, the battalion war diaries may be a start. Generally they only list men for a praticular reason though such as awarding of medal etc.

@gobuchul: thanks. I tried my Grandad and he was the first hit which got me his service number and a quick google of that revealed he’d been mentioned in Parliament after doing something heroic. I very much doubt he knew that. Quite an uplifting thing to find on a random Wednesday afternoon.

You’ve made my day.

Was speaking to someone who’d done research about their Grandfather who had died in the war, but she had very little to go on as she didn’t know what he was doing or where – tried various archives, IWM etc and couldn’t find any info and was beginning to think maybe they were doing something too clandestine to be of public record.

Anyway – it turned out he did indeed ‘die during in the war’. He was run over by a bus in Prestwick

If he was in the Paras, once you’ve found out some info, submit it to https://www.paradata.org.uk/roll-call?keys=&page=197

My Grandad is listed in there after my Uncle did some research & updated it.

a quick google of that revealed he’d been mentioned in Parliament after doing something heroic. I very much doubt he knew that

Brilliant.

Any chance you could share what he did?

Thanks for posting this. It’s reminded me to pursue my Grandfather’s Arctic Star. He served in the Merchant Navy as a radio officer on various convoys, including the route to Archangel and also later in the Pacific, managing to survive being torpedoed twice.

My grandfather also served in the Merchant Navy and was torpedoed twice – keep meaning to research my dad’s family tree as he disowned his family 50 years ago and doesn’t talk about them