MAY BANK HOLIDAY - 75th ANNIVERSARY OF VE DAY

Last year the UK Government changed the first Bank Holiday in May from it's usual place on Monday 4th to the Friday 8th May 2020 to coincide with the 75th Anniversary of VE Day. The last time this holiday was changed was for the 50th anniversary back in 1995.

Today is the 75th Anniversary of Victory in Europe Day (V-E Day) and it’s a great day to thank a veteran. This year VE Day is a public holiday celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Nazi Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces. On this day in 1945, more than a million people celebrated in the streets of the United Kingdom to mark the end of the European part of the war. In London, crowds massed in Trafalgar Square and to Buckingham Palace, where King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, accompanied by Prime Minister Winston Churchill, appeared on the balcony of the palace before cheering crowds.

There are many parallels between the struggles of the Second World War and what we are going through today. We look to our Second World War generation to learn from their experiences, and we continue our work to protect them from the threat we currently face. 

Join us on Friday 8 May as we pay tribute to the service and sacrifice of the entire Second World War generation, from British, Commonwealth and Allied Forces to evacuees and those who served on the home front. As we face some of the most challenging times since the end of the Second World War, now more than ever it is important to unite in recognition of service to the nation, just as communities did 75 years ago. The Royal British Legion will be broadcasting a live webcast from 11:15 on Friday and you can follow that by clicking on the banner link above. There were a number of different events planned that have of course had to be revised, and while the online remembrance will not be quite the same it would still be great to be involved and help support the work that the Legion continue to do all year round for our servicemen/women. Later in the evening at around 9pm on Friday join in for a UK-wide rendition of Dame Vera Lynn’s ‘We’ll Meet Again’ 

Upcoming bank holidays in England and Wales