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The early May sunshine cast long shadows across The Mall as thousands gathered to witness history unfold once more. For the first time since Queen Elizabeth II’s passing in 2022, a landmark VE Day celebration took place without any royals who had stood on the Buckingham Palace balcony 80 years prior.
King Charles III, alongside senior members of the Royal Family, gathered on the palace balcony in a powerful echo of that momentous day in 1945. The scene was both familiar and new – a testament to the passage of time and the continuity of remembrance.
As the King gazed upward at precisely noon, Actor Timothy Spall delivered Sir Winston Churchill’s famous victory speech, his voice carrying across the hushed crowd. The words, though eight decades old, still carried their electric charge of relief and triumph.
A Nation United in Memory
What made this celebration unique was the unprecedented scope of community involvement. Across the United Kingdom, over 5,000 street parties simultaneously erupted in celebration – the largest coordinated series of community gatherings since the Coronation.
In a particularly touching tribute, the Marble Corridor of Buckingham Palace had been decorated with bunting crafted from fabrics recycled from the Royal Estates – a nod to the wartime spirit of making do and mending.
The Cenotaph in Whitehall, draped magnificently in Union flags for the first time since its unveiling in 1920, stood as a silent sentinel to sacrifice. The sight moved many veterans to tears, including 102-year-old former RAF navigator Thomas Wilson, who attended with three generations of his family.
“It’s not just about remembering,” Wilson said, his voice steady despite his years. “It’s about showing the young ones what unity looks like.”
The People’s Celebration
The Cenotaph stands draped in flags, just as it did on VE Day 1945. 🇬🇧
Today, we pay tribute to the Greatest Generation whose courage secured the freedom and prosperity our Armed Forces protect today. #VEDay80 pic.twitter.com/7LDKE9X0Hg
— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) May 5, 2025
Along the Mall, ordinary citizens had transformed themselves into living exhibits of 1940s Britain. Grace Gothard from Mitcham wore a stunning Union Flag dress draped with the Ghanaian flag, while Satvinder Cubb from Chingford created a frock from two “Lest we forget” scarves.
The celebration took on additional meaning as thousands of community archives had contributed previously unseen photographs of the original VE Day, projected onto buildings throughout London. These intimate glimpses into private celebrations from 1945 connected past to present in an unprecedented digital memorial.
At the Victoria Memorial, the crowds parted to reveal a stunning tableau – 80 dancers, each representing a year since the war’s end, performed a choreographed piece tracing Britain’s journey from conflict to peace.
The Airborne Salute
The highlight arrived at 3pm – exactly when Churchill had announced victory 80 years earlier. A magnificent 23-strong formation of aircraft led by a historic Lancaster bomber thundered overhead. The formation included Typhoons and the Red Arrows trailing their signature red, white, and blue smoke.
But this year featured a meaningful addition – flying alongside them were aircraft from former Allied nations and, in a powerful gesture of reconciliation, a formation from the German Air Force. Together, they traced the path of peace across London’s skies.
The King stood at attention, the royal standard fluttering above, as the aircraft passed. For a moment, it seemed the royal family and the watching crowds were transported back to that jubilant day when Britain emerged from the darkness of war.
Looking Forward While Remembering the Past
Later that afternoon, Their Majesties hosted a tea party at Buckingham Palace for veterans and members of the wartime generation. Among them was 101-year-old Dorothy Campbell, who had danced in Trafalgar Square on the original VE Day. Today, she brought with her a cherished photograph of that moment, now digitally preserved in the National Archives.
As the celebrations continue across four days of national commemoration, the message remains clear: this is not merely about remembering victory, but about honoring sacrifice and recommitting to peace.
In the words inscribed on the commemorative medallion given to all attending veterans: “From darkness came light. From conflict came friendship. From sacrifice came our freedom.”
The VE Day 80th anniversary stands as a powerful reminder that while the voices of that generation grow fewer each year, their legacy endures in the peace they secured and the unity they inspire.
The will be more commemorations throughout the week and we’ll bring coverage as the events happen.
Here’s the full video from the day on YouTube:
