Royals and crowds look to the skiespublished at 13:55 British Summer Time 5 May
Image source, ReutersSummary
Street and tea parties are being held across the country, including at Buckingham Palace and Downing Street, to mark 80 years since World War Two ended in Europe
It comes after the Royal Family watched the Red Arrows fly over the Palace, with the King and Queen waving to thousands of people gathered on the Mall
The Prince and Princess of Wales, and their three children, joined the monarch - see the younger royals’ reaction
Earlier, the King saluted a military procession watched by thousands of spectators - one family tell the BBC they left home at 05:30 BST to bag a front-row spot
The World War Two veterans at today's events are in their late nineties and are representatives of a shrinking number of that generation, our royal correspondent Sean Coughlan writes
Watch: The royal moments you may have missed
Royals and crowds look to the skiespublished at 13:55 British Summer Time 5 May
Image source, ReutersRed Arrows blitz across London skylinepublished at 13:51 British Summer Time 5 May
There go the Red Arrows, followed soon after by the national anthem, for which the Royal Family poses on the balcony.
Image source, PA MediaSpectacular flypast roars over Buckingham Palacepublished at 13:50 British Summer Time 5 May
Sean Coughlan
Royal correspondent, reporting from the Mall
Image source, ReutersThe VE Day 80 flypast has roared over Buckingham Palace.
It's a spectacular five minutes over central London, but getting the display together means bringing together aircraft from RAF bases all over the country.
They join holding patterns over south east England before forming up for the final flypast.
The Red Arrows provided the finale, leaving vapour trails in the sky.
But also thundering over London were F-35M Lightning jets and Typhoons and an historic Lancaster, which was one of the most famous heavy bombers used in the Second World War.
Young royals on Buckingham Palace balconypublished at 13:50 British Summer Time 5 May
Image source, ReutersIt's not just the King and Queen standing on the Buckingham Palace balcony, but also their grandchildren – the children of the Prince and Princess of Wales, William and Kate.
Prince George, 11: The eldest of the three children, he's been spotted following his football team Aston Villa's travails in Europe with his father this season
Princess Charlotte, 10: She recently celebrated her birthday, with William and Kate marking the occasion by sharing a photo from a trip to Cumbria earlier in the year
Prince Louis, 7: You may remember the small Royal stealing the show with his mischievous faces when he appeared on the balcony for Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee
Lancaster Bomber leads the flypastpublished at 13:47 British Summer Time 5 May
With a great roar of its engine the Lancaster Bomber is the first aircraft to fly over Buckingham Palace.
Crowd roars for royalspublished at 13:47 British Summer Time 5 May
Mallory Moench and Ashitha Nagesh
Reporting from outside Buckingham Palace
Image source, PA MediaEveryone pressed up against the gates of Buckingham Palace is waiting to catch a glimpse of the royals on the balcony, with just minutes to go before the flypast.
And they appear!
"There they are," one woman coos in the crowd.
The crowds are now giving three cheers for the Royal Family - and for the VE Day heroes.
King and Queen take to Buckingham Palace balconypublished at 13:44 British Summer Time 5 May
BreakingMedia caption, Royal family appears on Buckingham Palace balcony
We're now seeing King Charles and Queen Camilla lead other members of the Royal Family onto the Buckingham Palace balcony, where they'll wait in anticipation of the Royal Air Force flypast.
As a reminder, today's appearance is particularly poignant because it marks the first time that no members of the Royal Family who were on the balcony in 1945 are present at a VE Day anniversary celebration.
In 1945, large crowds gathered outside Buckingham Palace to catch a glimpse of King George VI, the Queen Mother, a young Queen Elizabeth II, and Princess Margaret.
You can watch along with the Royals as the Red Arrows make their way over London by pressing watch live at the top of the page.
Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, In 1945 crowds gathered outside Buckingham Palace to see King George VI the Queen Mother, a young Queen Elizabeth II, and Princess Margaret - as well as Prime Minister Winston Churchill
Lancaster Bomber to lead flypastpublished at 13:42 British Summer Time 5 May
Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, A Lancaster Bomber is flanked by two Spitfires during a fly over above Buckingham Palace in June 2014
We will soon be able catch a glimpse of the Red Arrows flypast featuring 23 current and historic military aircraft.
Squadron Leader Dan Wilkes tells BBC Breakfast the iconic Lancaster Bomber plane will lead the flypast at 13:45 BST and this will be followed by "five extra waves" of military jets.
Wilkes previously worked on flypasts for the late Queen's Platinum Jubilee in 2022, the coronation of King Charles in 2023 and the King's birthday celebrations in 2023 and 2024.
"The timing is key to get everyone in the right place at the right time," he says adding the show will be closed off by the Red Arrows.
- You can read more here from Squadron Leader Dan Wilkes about what it is like to prepare for a military fly past
Mall packed moments before flypastpublished at 13:40 British Summer Time 5 May
Image source, PA MediaIt's selfie timepublished at 13:37 British Summer Time 5 May
Ashitha Nagesh
Reporting from the Mall
I'm now close to Buckingham Palace, with the rest of the crowd.
As you can imagine, it's a popular selfie spot.
From Parliament Square to Buckingham Palacepublished at 13:33 British Summer Time 5 May
While we wait for the Royal Family to appear on the Buckingham Palace balcony, let's take a look back at the procession.
Image source, PA Media
Image source, Reuters
Image source, EPA
Image source, PA MediaCrowds make their way to the Palacepublished at 13:30 British Summer Time 5 May
Ashitha Nagesh
Reporting from the Mall
Here we go!
It's time for the crowds to walk down the Mall towards the Palace.
Among the crowds woman holds up image of her veteran fatherpublished at 13:30 British Summer Time 5 May
Along the streets of Westminster one woman held up a picture of her veteran father and his war medal as people gathered around her to watch an armed forces and veterans' parade.
Image source, ReutersRoyals will watch flypast from Buckingham Palace balconypublished at 13:28 British Summer Time 5 May
The Royal Family have now headed inside, ahead of a Red Arrows flypast in around fifteen minutes.
They'll appear from the Buckingham Palace balcony, pictured here.
Swathes of people make their way to get up close to Buckingham Palacepublished at 13:25 British Summer Time 5 May
Huge crowds of people who had gathered either side of the Mall have now been allowed to walk down towards Buckingham Palace.
A number of cadets and army veterans are sat in the VIP Box which has since been vacated after the Royal Family members their spaces.
Everyone wants to get up close to see the famous Buckingham Palace balcony and the imminent military fly over including the Lancaster Bomber and Red Arrows display.
Loud applause for the street cleaning truckspublished at 13:23 British Summer Time 5 May
Ashitha Nagesh
Reporting from the MallSeveral street cleaning vehicles are making their way past - and get their own applause from the crowd.
It’s a reminder of how many people are involved in all aspects of the day, including those working behind the scenes.
With veterans ageing, a poignant sense of history is slipping awaypublished at 13:18 British Summer Time 5 May
Sean Coughlan
Royal correspondent, reporting from the Mall
Image source, PA MediaThis 80th anniversary of VE Day event is marking an important historic milestone, but there's also a poignant sense of watching a moment in history that's slipping away.
There were a couple of dozen veterans in the viewing platform before, alongside the royals and various dignitaries, as they watched the procession.
Those veterans are representatives of a shrinking number of that generation, now in their late nineties and older.
They fought for the democracy that is represented in the political leaders around them, helping to defeat the Nazi dictatorship in Germany.
This week's commemorations must be one of the last big public moments when sizeable numbers of that generation will be present to remember.
What happens next?published at 13:05 British Summer Time 5 May
Image source, PA MediaThe military procession has just wrapped up, but we're still expecting more pageantry today:
- Red Arrows in the skies: Over 1,300 armed forces personnel took part in a military procession from Whitehall to Buckingham Palace - the flypast is due at 13:45 BST
- Royals on the balcony: King Charles and Queen Camilla will appear on the Buckingham Palace balcony alongside senior members of the Royal Family
- Street parties and get-togethers: HMS Belfast is hosting a private VE Day 80th anniversary event, with Radio 5 Live’s Matt Chorley joining for afternoon tea. In the evening, there’s a late night extravaganza, external with drinks, music and special guests
You can find out more about what’s happening today and other events running until 8 May here.
Royals make their way inside Buckingham Palacepublished at 12:59 British Summer Time 5 May
Image source, PA MediaAs the procession concludes, members of the Royal Family can be seen leaving their front-row seats from the VIP box.
They are now heading up to the balcony of Buckingham Palace - which has been dressed up for the next stage of today's VE Day commemoration.
Image source, PA MediaProcession concludes - but RAF flypast still to comepublished at 12:57 British Summer Time 5 May
Image source, PA MediaThe last troops have now reached Buckingham Palace where the procession will end. King Charles could be seen standing throughout to salute those marching as they passed.
Here’s a quick recap of what we’ve seen:
- The procession began with the chimes of Big Ben followed by the recitation of a portion of Winston Churchill's VE Day broadcast read by actor Timothy Spall
- The King and Queen, Princess Royal and the Prince and Princess of Wales were among the royals we spotted – they could be seen chatting with veterans as they waited for the procession to arrive
- Eleven members of Ukraine’s military, holding their country’s flag, marched along with other regiments. There was applause from both the crowds and the royal viewing platform as they passed
- Homemade outfits, patriotic pooches and plenty of union jacks were key features within the crowds lining the Mall – many people had their phones raised to take photos, others clapped as the procession passed them
- The weather largely held up, although a few raindrops could be felt by our reporters on the ground – it shouldn’t affect the flypast which is due to take place at around 13:45 BST
