Veterans celebrated like it was 1945 at a sumptuous tea party thrown in their honour.
The glorious gathering of giants – one of the largest get-togethers of heroes from the Second World War – was treated to a gala afternoon to toast the 80th anniversary of the end of the conflict.
Centre stage at the event hosted this afternoon by the Royal British Legion at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire, the home of remembrance, were those who helped secure freedom in Europe from the iron grip of fascism.
And on VE Day 44 warriors, including Britain’s oldest veteran Donald Rose, 110, who joined the Queen’s Royal Regiment aged 25 and went on to train as a sniper.
He served in North Africa and Europe and puts his longevity down to salty water he had to drink during his time as a Desert Rat.
Hero Donald from Ilkeston, Derbyshire, who celebrated his birthday on Christmas Eve, is a proud recipient of France’s highest award – the Legion of Honour – and took his place at the top table alongside others from the greatest generation including Bernard Morgan, 101, Burma Star veteran George Durrant, 100, and husband and wife RAF veterans Roy Lawrence, 100 and Kathleen, 101, to tuck into something far more agreeable, a grand spread featuring cuppas, sandwiches and delicious cakes.
They headed an extraordinary guest list as the very best of British were lauded before a service of commemoration to remember those who never returned home.
Wheelchair-bound warriors Kathleen and Roy Lawrence, married for 74 years, clutched a bouquet of flowers as they sealed the celebrations with a kiss.
Hero Bernard from Crewe, Cheshire, signed up to join the war effort on his 18th birthday in February 1942 and became a codebreaker.
Aged 20 he was the youngest RAF Sergeant to land in Normandy and one of the first to discover the war had ended when he deciphered a secret telex which read: “The German war is now over. The surrender is effective some time tomorrow.”
He said: “I’m so lucky to have escaped alive. The real heroes are the ones who gave their lives for the freedom we enjoy today.”
Eighty years ago millions of war weary families across Britain greeted the news of peace with spontaneous celebrations.
That unique tradition was kept alive as street parties and gatherings were held in all four corners of the nation to salute those who served and remember those who fell.
Many honoured the anniversary by dressing in wartime uniforms in a recreation of joyous scenes of spontaneity that erupted at the news of peace at last.
In Redcar, North Yorkshire, thousands gathered to mark VE Day with a seafront parade before a service of commemoration.
Eric Howden, branch president of the Royal British Legion, said: “We want to remember those who didn’t come back.”
In Newcastle, veterans gathered at the city’s cenotaph in Eldon Square to lay wreaths in tribute to the fallen, while street parties were held in Cardiff, Bristol, Liverpool and Manchester.
In Bedworth, Warwickshire, home to more than 3,000 members of the Gurkha and Nepalese community 150 soldiers from the 30 Signal and Queens Gurkha Signals regiments marched through the town centre.
At midday the UK fell silent for two minutes as the nation stopped to remember the fallen as the Cenotaph in Whitehall remained draped in union jack flags.
Later tonight more than 1,000 beacons and several hundred “lamp lights of peace” will be lit across the UK to celebrate the VE Day.
Commemorations are being held to recreate the jubilant scenes of May 8, 1945, when people up and down the country lit hundreds of bonfires after the news of the German surrender.
Flames from the beacons symbolise peace and the millions of lives lost to war.
Pageant-master Bruno Peek said: “VE Day 80 is not only a tribute to those who fought for the freedom we all enjoy today, but also a powerful reminder of the resilience and unity that have defined our country ever since.”