Many ways for us to honour and celebrate those who brought peace

restrictions.

But there are many ways to honour, celebrate and thank the WWII generation whilst staying at home - with TV, radio, the web, social media and live streaming - beginning with the national moment of remembrance and two-minute silence at 11am this morning.

The Royal British Legion invites people across the UK to join in reflecting and remembering - some will remain indoors for silent commemoration and others will choose to stand at a window, in a balcony or at their front door.

A wide variety of stay-at-home VE Day commemorations and celebrations have been instigated by the Legion, the Government and by our different local councils and heritage organisations, most incorporating Winston Churchill’s Victory speech made at 3pm, 75 years ago this afternoon.

There have been a number of different photographs of Churchill on this page during the run-up to today’s anniversary, most of them well-known newspaper portraits, but today there’s a previously unpublished image, courtesy of Viscount Brookeborough, Lord Lieutenant for County Fermanagh.

Lord Brookeborough’s Great Great Uncle was Field Marshal Lord Alanbrooke, First Viscount of Brookeborough in County Fermanagh who, with Winston Churchill, led the British to victory in WWII. He was the uncle of Sir Basil Brooke, Prime Minister of Northern Ireland from 1943 until 1963.

As Chief of the Imperial General Staff Lord Alanbrooke headed the British Army, and as chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee, he was Winston Churchill’s foremost military advisor.

The photograph shared here by his Great Great Nephew was taken in London, exactly 75 years ago on VE Day, and shows Churchill and Field Marshal Lord Alanbrooke on either side of King George VI, flanked by Air Chief Marshal Sir Charles Portal and Admiral of the Fleet and First Sea Lord Sir Andrew Cunningham. The picture is hanging in Colebrooke, the ancestral home of the historic Brooke family, a short distance from the village of Brookeborough.

It’s captioned very simply, in ordinary, humble typeface - “VE-Day: The King thanks the men who brought about the Triumph in the West.”

Marking that day 75 years later, all across the UK, there’ll be solo bugle, cornet and trumpet calls - the Last Post and Reveille - and lone pipers will play the Battles Over. We’re all invited to stand and raise a glass for the ‘Nation’s Toast to the Heroes of WWII’ at 3pm and coming up to 7pm lone Town Criers here and around Britain will call out a ‘Cry for Peace’

In Enniskillen the cry is being accompanied by a brass hand-bell presented to the town by the VE Day 75 organisers for being the UK’s most westerly town to celebrate.

Amongst numerous national, local and social media commemorations being streamed or broadcast over the weekend, Her Majesty The Queen will send a message to the nation at 9pm tonight on BBC One, the exact moment her father, King George VI, gave a radio address in 1945. His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales will read an extract from King George VI’s diary recounting May 8 1945 and describing the celebrations including The Royal Family’s iconic Buckingham Palace balcony appearances.

But as time passes, fewer first-hand accounts and memories can be shared at WWII reunions or anniversaries by veterans from the front lines or home front. County Fermanagh has marked VE Day 75 by commissioning two paintings of two of its veterans, by Lambeg artist David Briggs.

The paintings are captioned with our country’s collective indebtedness: ‘Sunderland Scramble - Rita’s War’ and ‘Catalina Return - Frankie’s War’. Rita Hamilton from Maguiresbridge was on duty as a WAAF driver at Castle Archdale sea-plane base on VE Day. She and her sister Constance, with nine or ten other women drivers, celebrated with RAF comrades on a motorboat on Lough Erne.

Rita’s friend and colleague-WAAF driver Frankie Hornby from Newtownbutler was also based at Killadeas. They both received their paintings in advance of VE Day 75.

“That’s my Fordson three tonne lorry,” a delighted Rita exclaimed “I remember it well. I had to bring it into Enniskillen every week to get filled with diesel and then collect supplies and liquor for the RAF camp.”

Frankie’s painting is set outside the Manor House at Killadeas which was used as accommodation for RAF officers. She is depicted collecting a senior officer in a military Humber Hawk staff-car. A Catalina flying boat above them is returning from a mission.

On the May 26 1941 the Catalina would spot the battleship Bismarck leading to the pride of the German fleet being destroyed.

“There’s a Sunderland!” said an excited Rita as her painting brought back memories of the air-crews she transported in her lorry for night-time sorties over the Atlantic.

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