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6 June 2024
D-Day Memorial dedicated in Gosport
Bishop Jonathan dedicated a new D-Day Memorial in Gosport, on the day we marked 80 ... read more
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5 June 2024
Portsmouth hosts national D-Day anniversary event
Our city hosted the UK’s national commemorative event to mark 80 years since D-Day – ... read more
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30 May 2024
City children will sing as part of D-Day 80 event
A specially-formed children’s choir will sing in front of HM the King and a national ... read more
Portsmouth hosts national D-Day anniversary event
PORTSMOUTH hosted the national commemoration that marked 80 years since the events of D-Day that shaped our nation and preserved our freedom.
City schoolchildren were among those that sang as part of the event on Southsea Common, joining singer Zak Abel in a rendition of the Beach Boys’ track God Only Knows – a tribute to those who fought on the Normandy beaches on D-Day and in the months afterwards. They performed in front of HM the King, HM the Queen, HRH the Prince of Wales, political leaders, D-Day veterans and millions watching on TV.
The 30 pupils in the Portsmouth D-Day Junior Choir were from local schools across the city, including St John’s RC Primary, Langstone Junior, St George’s C of E Primary, St Jude’s C of E Primary, Mayville, Portsmouth High and Portsmouth Grammar Schools.
One of them, 10-year-old Luca Shaw, a chorister from Portsmouth Cathedral, read an account from just before D-Day written by 12-year-old Trevor Butler. He recounted what it was like to live in Portsmouth as troops assembled before the invasion - and what it felt like when the soldiers and their vehicles disappeared on D-Day itself. Read what Luca thought about his role in the event here.
D-Day veterans were at the heart of the event, which was hosted by Dame Helen Mirren and can be viewed on the BBC iPlayer here. It featured music from military bands, reflections from D-Day veteran Roy Hayward and Eric Bateman, songs from the 1940s, and readings from actors and others playing the parts of those involved with D-Day.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak read the personal message sent from General Bernard Montgomery, who was in command of all Allied ground forces during the Battle of Normandy, to all troops on the eve of D-Day. And HRH Prince William read a letter from Captain Alastair Bannerman of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment written to his wife on the morning of D-Day.
“We will always remember those who served and those who waved them off,” he said. “Today we remember the bravery of those who crossed the sea to liberate Europe, those who ensured that Operation Overlord was a success, and those who waited for their safe return.”
HM the King also spoke to those assembled on Southsea Common. He said: “The stories of courage, resilience and solidarity which we have heard today and throughout our lives cannot fail to move us, to inspire us and to remind us what we owe to that great wartime generation. It is our privilege to hear their testimony. It is our duty to ensure that we and future generation do not forget their service and their sacrifice in replacing tyranny with freedom. Let us once again commit ourselves to remember, cherish and honour those who served that day and to live up to the freedom they died for. For we are all eternally in their debt.”
There were 1940s-style song and dance spectaculars from Eastenders actress Emma Barton, who grew up in Horndean, and American actress Marisha Wallace - and Call the Midwife actor Helen George sang the 1940s classic We’ll Meet Again.
The event ended with a gun salute from HMS St Albans in the Solent and a flypast by the Red Arrows, after which HM the King met D-Day veterans and their families to thank them personally.
And on the evening of Wednesday 5th June, there is a community vigil in Southsea to honour Allied soldiers who fought and died during D-Day operations, which will include live music performances and a broadcast from Bayeux War Cemetery in France.
The events in Normandy on Thursday 6th June will centre on the British Normandy Memorial, which lists the names of the 22,442 people who died under British command on D-Day and during the Battle of Normandy.
The D-Day invasion of Normandy was the largest seaborne invasion the world has ever seen and involved Allied Forces from 18 different countries collaborating in a top-secret operation to land troops on a 50-mile stretch of coast. The efforts of D-Day and Operation Overlord in the summer of 1944 paved the way for the eventual victory of the Allies over Hitler’s Nazi regime. Read more about the impact of D-Day on the Second World War here.