What time is the Queen’s VE Day speech?
The Queen will address the nation today for the 75th anniversary of VE Day, although celebrations will be muted with the country in lockdown due to coronavirus.
Despite the pandemic, Royal Air Force jets will fly over the UK’s four capitals to mark Victory in Europe day, when Nazi Germany surrendered during World War II.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson will also deliver a televised message to the nation to mark the national holiday. He will also speak to a veteran on a video call.
Johnson said: “Today we must celebrate their achievement, and we remember their sacrifice.”
“We are a free people because of everything our veterans did – we offer our gratitude, our heartfelt thanks and our solemn pledge: you will always be remembered.”
For Queen Elizabeth today day holds special significance. It was 75 years ago that her father George VI addressed the country on the radio as the war in Europe came to a close.
It is rare for the 94-year-old Queen to speak directly to the country. Yet as coronavirus has killed tens of thousands of Britons she has already addressed the public twice since the pandemic began.
What time is the Queen’s VE Day speech?
Commemorations will begin at 11am, when the Queen’s son Prince Charles will lead a two-minute silence.
At around 3pm, extracts from then-Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s 1945 victory speech will be aired on BBC One.
“My dear friends, this is your hour,” Churchill said on 8 May 1945. “This is not a victory of a party or of any class. It’s a victory of the great British nation as a whole.”
The Queen’s televised address will be aired at 9pm. It will be shown simultaneously on BBC One and ITV1. It will also be streamed on BBC iPlayer and ITV Hub.
The commemorations come ahead of an expected easing of the coronavirus lockdown. However, the government has warned that only minor changes will be made.
Foreign secretary Dominic Raab confirmed yesterday that Johnson will on Sunday lay out a “roadmap” for lifting restrictions.
He added that any changes in the short term will be “modest, small, incremental” and closely monitored.