King leads nation in tribute to the greatest generation
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Four days of national commemorations to the Second World War
generation kick off in London tomorrow with a recital of iconic
Winston Churchill speeches by Hollywood actor Timothy Spall.
Timothy Spall will start the events by reading extracts from
Churchill's iconic VE Day victory speech in 1945. Normandy veteran
Alan Kennett, 100, will formally start the procession after being
handed the Commonwealth War Graves' Torch For Peace by Air Cadet
Warrant Officer Emmy...Request free
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Four days of national commemorations to the Second World War generation kick off in London tomorrow with a recital of iconic Winston Churchill speeches by Hollywood actor Timothy Spall. Timothy Spall will start the events by reading extracts from Churchill's iconic VE Day victory speech in 1945. Normandy veteran Alan Kennett, 100, will formally start the procession after being handed the Commonwealth War Graves' Torch For Peace by Air Cadet Warrant Officer Emmy Jones. The procession, featuring more than 1,300 members of the Armed Forces and youth groups will march down Whitehall, through Admiralty Arch and up the Mall towards Buckingham Palace where Their Majesties The King and Queen, as well as Members of The Royal Family, the Prime Minister and a number of Second World War veterans will be on a specially built platform on the Queen Victoria Memorial. A fly past, which Members of the Royal Family will watch from the Balcony at Buckingham Palace, will conclude Monday's events. From 9pm on Tuesday evening, hundreds of buildings across the country will be lit up to mark VE 80. Buildings include Buckingham Palace, 10 Downing Street, the Houses of Parliament, the Tower of London, Canary Wharf's 1 Canada Square, the Shard, Lowther Castle, Rochester Cathedral, Manchester Printworks, Cardiff Castle, Senedd, Perth Bridge, City Chambers and Belfast City Hall. On Thursday, a service at Westminster Abbey will begin with a national two-minute silence, which is expected to be replicated across the nation. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said:
“This 80th anniversary is a moment of national unity. A time to celebrate that hard won peace, honour the memory of those who lost their lives, and remember the sacrifices made by so many to secure our freedom. “Their legacy lives on today in how we stand together in defence of the values they fought for and which bind us together as a nation. This week, we come together to salute their service.” Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said: “80 years ago millions of people celebrated the end of the Second World War in Europe. This week, we will recreate this moment across towns and cities, in our homes, in pubs and on our streets. “We must do all we can to ensure that the stories and memories of this period in our history are not forgotten. We must not forget the hardships, the heroics and the millions who lost their lives. “We are here because of the sacrifices they made and the horrors they endured. This week, I urge the nation to come together and send a powerful message: we will remember them.” ENDS Notes to editors Across the four days, official events and services will be taking place across the UK to mark 80 years of the end of the Second World War in Europe including events in the Devolved Nations, including: Monday 5 May:
Tuesday 6 May:
Wednesday 7 May:
Thursday 8 May:
Services of remembrance and community celebrations will take place across Northern Ireland throughout the week. The Government has launched Tip Top Towns, a programme to encourage communities across the country - whether towns, villages or cities - to get together with their communities ahead of 5 May when the nation will come together for street parties to celebrate VE Day. Members of the public are encouraged to get in the VE Day spirit by making their own decorations, planting flowers, encouraging children to draw pictures for their windows or hosting arts and craft sessions. Full list of buildings being lit up: London: Houses of Parliament, London Elizabeth Tower, London Buckingham Palace, London 10 Downing Street, London Battersea Power Station, London Tower 42 (Natwest Building), London Millenium Bridge, London The Shard, London Tower of London, London St Paul's Cathedral, London London Eye, London Canary Wharf 1 Canada Square, London National Theatre, London British Film Institute, London The Cenotaph, London HMS Belfast, London IWM London, London BFI IMAX, London BFI Southbank, London London Bridge, London Cannon Street Railway Bridge, London Southwark Bridge, London Waterloo Bridge, London Golden Jubilee Footbridges, London Westminster Bridge, London Lambeth Bridge, London Blackfriars Bridge, London 102 Petty France, London The National Archives, London 120 Fenchurch Street, London Twickenham/Aviva Stadium, London North West England: IWM North, Salford Liverpool's Royal Liver Building, Liverpool Manchester Printworks, Manchester The Royal Exchange, Manchester Lowther Castle, Cumbria Blackpool seafront & tower, Blackpool Rivington Pike, Chorley Chorley Town hall, Chorley North East England: Durham Cathedral, Durham Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Newcastle Glasshouse International Centre, Newcastle Municipal Buildings, Middlesborough Town Hall, Middlesborough Town Hall Clock Tower, Middlesborough Central Library, Middlesborough Bottle of Notes, Middlesborough St Hilda's Bell structure, Middlesborough Zetland Car Park, Middlesborough The Issac Wilson pub, Middlesborough Dorman Museum, Middlesborough South East England: The Spinnaker Tower, Portsmouth Rochester Cathedral, Rochester Brighton Royal Pavillion, Brighton South West England: Runnymede Air Force Memorial, Surrey County Hall, Dorset Aerospace Bristol, Bristol The Grand Pier, Weston-super-Mare East England: St Edmundsbury Cathedral, Suffolk West Midlands: Birmingham Central Library, Birmingham Tamworth Castle, Staffordshire Kings Heath (trees), Birmingham National Memorial Arboretum, Staffordshire East Midlands: Derwent Dam, Peak District Scotland: The Kelpies, Falkirk The Falkirk Wheel, Falkirk Perth Bridge, Perth Hamilton House, Lanarkshire City Chambers, Edinburgh St Paul's Church, Perth Northern Ireland: Belfast City Hall, Belfast Titanic Museum, Belfast Enniskillen Castle, Enniskillen Strule Arts Centre, Omagh Parliament Buildings Wales: Welsh Government Building in Cathays Park, Cardiff Welsh Parliament ( Senedd Cymru) in Cardiff Bay Cardiff Castle, Cardiff Castell Coch, Cardiff Caernarfon Castle, Caernarfon Channel Islands: Castle Cornet, Guernsey Fort Grey, Guernsey Beau Sejour Leisure, Guernsey |