During the Second World War, life on board ship was dangerous, poorly paid and often brief: one in four British merchantmen died - a far higher casualty rate than any of the armed services. But their bravery and sacrifice has barely been acknowledged: "Coming back from the sea in the merchant navy I was actually getting assaulted at bus stops - accused of being an army dodger," says one merchant mariner. In Forgotten Heroes the merchant seamen who braved the North Atlantic storms and the deadly U-boats to keep Britain supplied during the war tell their own brave and moving stories.