World War II caused a lot of destruction to the Maltese islands, but it also brought death with it, and not all casualties were locals.

Nigel Heritage has personally felt the consequences of this, even though he never met his relative who passed away here. In a candid video interview, Nigel opens up about his family’s experience: “It was such a great war time love story,” he says. 

The love story Nigel refers to involves his mother and her first husband, Alexander McDonald. Mac, as he was known, was of Scottish and Irish descent and grew up in Trinidad, but had been sent to England by his family to further his education. He met Nigel’s mother at their common workplace in a shipbuilding conference and the pair “fell in love.”

Their engagement lasted for two years, and they got married at 21, but their happiness was short lived. Nigel pays tribute to Mac’s steadfast principles, even though the pair are not blood relatives: “After Dunkirk, when things looked bad in England, one of his bosses said, well you can go home if you want to, you’re not English.”

This was technically a correct statement, as Mac wasn’t in fact a British citizen, however the young man was adamant to serve the country that had become his second home. “He refused [to leave] and volunteered for the Fleet Air Arm,” says Nigel. However, Mac's decision proved fatal.

Mac fell during the Siege of Malta, during which 6,700 tonnes of bombs were dropped on the island over a 154 day period. His grave, also in Malta, was recently visited by Nigel, and he narrates the surreal experience with tears in his eyes: “I went to honour him, because his death gave me life,” he states, explaining that after Mac's death, Nigel’s mum remarried to Nigel’s father.

Watch the video below:

And we thought the Pearl Harbour film was heartbreaking...