THE Vale council is encouraging residents to celebrate the 75th anniversary of VE Day at home by taking part in activities to mark the occasion.

Restrictions to prevent the spread of coronavirus mean the usual ceremony held outside the Civic Offices, in Barry, and other public gatherings cannot take place this year.

The Union Flag will fly above the building and residents are invited to join a national moment of remembrance by observing the two-minute silence from their homes, doorsteps or places of work at 11am on Friday, May 8.

Coverage of the occasion will be broadcast on television, with Winston Churchill’s speech announcing the end of the war shown at 3pm.

The Queen will address the country at 9pm, the exact time her father King George VI spoke on radio in 1945, before the Royal British Legion sing We’ll Meet Again.

There is also a national drive to hold a stay-at-home celebration, with tea and scones scheduled for 4pm and dinner at 6pm when people are asked to raise a glass to their neighbours.

The sports development team has been providing tips on how to make bunting that can be hung outside the home and recipes to prepare food that would have been eaten at the time.

They have also been promoting games and play activities of the era, while the council will be sharing other ideas on how to mark VE Day on social media.

Barry Town Council is asking residents to decorate windows and hold picnics in their gardens and Penarth Town council will fly the Armed Forces flag at West House, while Cowbridge Town Council is decorating the town hall and organising socially distanced street parties.

Vale council armed forces champion, Cllr Eddie Williams said: “We owe a debt of gratitude to those who served in combat and on the home front during the Second World War.

“The recent hardship caused by the coronavirus pandemic has in some small way perhaps helped us better appreciate the enormous sacrifices made by ordinary men and women more than seven decades ago.

“They gave everything for the freedoms we enjoy today. That fact should never be forgotten and it’s important we take the time to mark this occasion even though that must be done from within our own homes.”

MOD St Athan station warrant officer, Dave Stroud said: “VE Day is a chance to pause and remember.

“We in the Armed Forces take tremendous pride in wearing our uniforms because of what our uniforms stand for.

“Our uniforms stand for all those men and women who were involved in both world wars, those that paid the ultimate price, those who lived with terrible physical and mental scars, those who wore their uniforms with such outstanding bravery, passion, commitment and determination.

“All of them gave everything in the fight and the winning of, the freedom we all take for granted today.”