Summary

  • The Channel Islands are marking the 80th Liberation Day

  • The milestone anniversary commemorates the end of five years of the German Occupation during World War Two

  • Parades, parish parties and plenty of music and memories will be shared during the day

  • To start the day, islanders gathered for a Liberation Day breakfast in Jersey and a two-minute silence was held in Guernsey at 09:00

  • Later a 21-gun salute was fired from Castle Cornet

  • The Princess Royal has read a speech on behalf of King Charles in St Peter Port

Live Reporting

  1. Victory in Europe heard on banned radio and crystal sets

    Our dear Channel Islands will be freed.

    The words of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in his Victory in Europe Day speech on 8 May 1945.

    He announced the surrender of Nazi Germany to the Allied forces before calling for a "brief period of rejoicing" before the nation's focus switched to the ongoing war with Japan.

    In his speech, which contained more than 500 words, the single line about the islands was heard by those islanders listening on their hidden radio or crystal sets, which if discovered would have seen them fined or imprisoned.

    The moment Churchill announced victory in Europe

  2. Celebrating the light after five years of darkness

    Liberation Day - 9 May 1945 - is a key moment in the history of the Channel Islands as the occupying forces in Guernsey and Jersey surrendered.

    The German Occupation, which began on 30 June 1940 when troops landed at Guernsey Airport, saw islanders imprisoned, forcefully deported and concentration camps operated on British soil.

    Slaves were put to work building fortifications, with a reported 10% of the concrete used to create Hitler's Atlantic Wall - which ran from the French/Spanish border to Norway and was designed to stop an Allied invasion - used in the islands.

    These structures remain a stark reminder of this dark period in the islands' history - although some have been turned into museums, tourism accommodation and used for storage.

    Join us as we'll be sharing the events of the 80th anniversary and the stories of those who lived through this key time in the history of the islands.