VJ Day: Veterans honoured by King, Queen and Prime Minister on 80th anniversary
There is a service of remembrance at the National Memorial Arboretum today to mark the 80th anniversary of VJ day.
Second World War veterans will be honoured by the King and Queen today, on the 80th anniversary of VJ Day.
Charles, Camilla, and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will attend a service of remembrance at the National Memorial Arboretum today, which will also have 33 veterans aged 96 to 105 as guests, all of whom served in the Far East and Pacific.
The Royal British Legion (RBL) event will honour British, Commonwealth and Allied veterans who served in the Far East theatres of war including Myanmar and the Pacific and Indian Ocean territories.
Around 1,500 guests will hear first-hand from veterans who experienced conflict in the Far East before the war ended when atomic bombs fell on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, leading to Japan’s surrender and VJ Day on August 15 1945.
The service will begin with a national two-minute silence and include flypasts by the Red Arrows and the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight’s Spitfire, Hurricane and Lancaster – with military bagpipers playing at dawn in the Far East section of the Arboretum.
Downing Street reception for veterans
The Prime Minister held a special reception at Downing Street for veterans on Thursday, at which he said: “Eighty years since our victory in the Second World War, we pay our respects to the many who fought, were captured, and made the ultimate sacrifice in the Far East.
“Our country owes a great debt to those who fought for a better future, so we could have the freedoms and the life we enjoy today. We must honour that sacrifice with every new generation.”
WW2 veterans tell their story
Many of the veterans at the Arboretum in Alrewas, Staffordshire, have never told their story before registering with the RBL to be part of commemorations to mark the 80th anniversary of Victory Over Japan.
Veterans attending the event served in the British Army, the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force, with roles ranging from those deployed on submarines, minesweepers and destroyers, to a Spitfire pilot and a combat cameraman.
The oldest veterans are Yavar Abbas and Owen Filer, aged 105, and other attendees include two of the last surviving Chindits – Charlie Richards, 104, and Sid Machin, 101 – who served in the elite Special Forces unit known for their deep jungle warfare tactics as part of Operation Thursday.
Mr Richards, from Northamptonshire – who served in the 7th Battalion of the Leicestershire Regiment, spent months behind enemy lines ambushing Japanese supplies and communications, all while pulling along reluctant mules and heavy equipment.
The 104-year-old said: “I am so proud to attend the RBL’s national event, and I think it will be a really poignant moment for those of us left.
“I want to represent all those who saw action in the Far East and remember those who never made it home, including my best friend and comrade, Son Johnson, who was killed in action in Burma. It will be such a special day for me and my family.”
Joseph Hammond, 100, whose testimony will be shared during the service, will be watching the live broadcast from his home in Ghana 3,000 miles away.
Mr Hammond fought in Burma in the 82nd Division in brutal conditions near the Irrawaddy River and suffered a serious eye injury and remained in hospital until the war ended.
In 2020, he walked 14 miles over seven days to raise £500,000 for frontline workers and veterans during the Covid pandemic.
Mr Hammond said: “Why should such a thing happen? Man killing his fellow man. Humanity, destroying humanity. Never allow your country to go that way. It’s no good. I know how it feels, so I have to advise everybody to keep away from war. Let us continue to enjoy our peace.”
Hundreds of buildings light up for VJ Day
From 9pm on Friday evening, hundreds of buildings across the country will be lit up to mark VJ 80, including Buckingham Palace, 10 Downing Street, the Houses of Parliament, the Tower of London, Tower42, The Shard, Blackpool Tower, Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Durham Cathedral, Cardiff Castle, the Cenotaph, the Kranji War Memorial in Singapore and the White Cliffs of Dover.