Pictures of a Kent RNLI crew dispatched to the famous Dunkirk rescue have been reproduced in full colour for the first time to mark the 85th anniversary.

A crew at Margate Lifeboat Station answered the government’s call to send small vessels across the Channel to evacuate some of the nearly 340,000 stranded British, French and Belgian troops in May 1940.

Now, two digitally enhanced images to commemorate Operation Dynamo, showing Coxswain Edward Duke Parker and his team of volunteers standing by their Lord Southborough lifeboat, with a second showing the vessel out at sea.

Mr Parker – who was awarded a Distinguished Service Medal for his services at Dunkirk – previously said of the mission: “Margate lifeboat crew were standing by in their favourite pub, playing a quiet game of darts when I was called down to the boathouse.

“I asked them if they would help take the boat to Dunkirk to help rescue our boys. That was a shock to them, but they all volunteered without a murmur.

“They rushed home to tell their wives to get some food and then we were off.

“Margate was a pretty dead town then, more than half the residents had evacuated.

“But when we got to Dunkirk, it was a bit different. With shells bursting and fires raging, it was like hell.”

The RNLI says its in-house creative team spent hours of research and detailed work bringing the original black and white images to life.

The crew from Ramsgate Lifeboat Station took the town’s lifeboat called Prudential across to France.

Together, the two boats helped to save 3,400 lives in the evacuation, with the Prudential credited for taking off 2,800 men from the beaches within 48 hours.

They were among 19 lifeboats sent by the RNLI with two volunteer crews and the other 17 manned by the Royal Navy.

Ramsgate's Prudential arrived two miles east of Dunkirk in dire weather conditions.

Describing the scene, Coxswain Howard Knight, in command of the Prudential, said: “It was black as Hades and visibility was nil.”

Battling strong tides and dodging enemy fire, boats and wreckage, Ramsgate's crew helped row the wherries to the beach to collect soldiers, while Coxswain Knight and the rest of his crew held the lifeboat steady.

By daybreak, the visibility improved but the sea conditions worsened and the crew battled on.

They kept going for 30 hours until the last of the wherries, battered by the surf, was too damaged to continue.

After a long trek back across the channel to Ramsgate, the crew were in action again, bringing injured troops ashore from other vessels.

Ian Cannon, current Coxswain at Ramsgate Lifeboat Station, has a direct family link back to the crew that set sail for Dunkirk 85 years ago as his great, great uncle, Alf Moody, was second Coxswain during the rescue.

On May 30, 1940, Alf was on the crew that braved the bombs to rescue troops stuck on the beaches of Dunkirk.

Ian said: “I wanted to join the RNLI as soon as I could. I joined on my 17th birthday. I was so inspired by my family history, my father, my grandfather and my great, great uncle have all been on crew at Ramsgate.

“As we celebrate the 85th anniversary of the Dunkirk evacuation, I can only imagine what it must have been like for my Uncle Alf and the other volunteer crew on the Prudential.

“She was a wooden boat, 48ft, single engine – not very powerful, with no real protection for the crew. There was no real shelter, no seats. They took her across the Channel for two nights. They must have been absolutely exhausted and soaked.

“I’m so proud of my family history at Ramsgate Lifeboat Station and all the lives they have helped to save.”

RNLI heritage archive and research manager Hayley Whiting said: “As we mark the 85th anniversary of Dunkirk, it feels fitting to bring these images of Margate Lifeboat Station to life with colour and remember the bravery of the crews that went across to Dunkirk and the lives they saved.

“I’m delighted to see Coxswain Parker and his crew in colour, it gives us an opportunity to share this remarkable story of courage and take a moment to reflect on the bravery of those who set sail for Dunkirk all those years ago and the difficult journey they faced. “We’re so proud of their courage and lifesaving efforts.”