City to host free D-Day 80th anniversary event

The operation saw the Allied Forces mount a large-scale invasion of Nazi-occupied France that tipped the course of World War Two in the Allies’ favour

A free event will be held in Wolverhampton city centre to mark the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landings.

During World War Two, troops from the UK, US, Canada and France attacked German forces on the coast of northern France in 1944.

D-Day was the largest naval, air and land operation ever attempted and marked the start of the campaign to liberate Nazi-occupied north-west Europe.

To commemorate the historic day, an event is set to take place on the piazza outside the city's Civic Centre on 6 June.

D-Day involved the simultaneous landing of tens of thousands of troops on five separate beaches in Normandy

It is scheduled to start at 19:00 BST and will feature speeches, a ukulele performance, 1940s musical singers The Bluebird Belles and a set by City of Wolverhampton Brass Band to close the event.

At 21:15, the city will join the nation in the lighting of commemorative beacons.

Mayor of Wolverhampton, Councillor Linda Leach said: “The bravery and sacrifice by so many on D-Day, one of the largest operations in history deserves to be recognised."