VE Day in 1945 saw Britain and its Allies formally accept Nazi Germany's unconditional surrender
The Queen will address the nation later this evening
Coronavirus lockdown means there will be no large scale street parties or parades
Extracts from Sir Winston Churchill's victory speech were broadcast at 15:00 BST
Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall led a two-minute silence this morning
Boris Johnson thanks the VE Day generation, saying "our gratitude will be eternal"
Updates on Friday 8 May
Stand (or sit) and raise a toast - at home, in your front room, your garden, at work or wherever you are - at 15:00 BST.
People across the UK will be joining the national toast and saying: "To those who gave so much, we thank you."
Image source, Getty ImagesIn five minutes, BBC One will broadcast Winston Churchill’s stirring victory speech.
The prime minister was addressing the British people from Downing Street when he announced that the war was over in Europe.
His historic speech will be broadcast alongside a bespoke film for the occasion at 15:00 BST.
Image source, Getty Images
A wreath has been laid at the Armed Forces Memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum.
The anniversary of VE Day was marked at the arboretum at Alrewas, in Staffordshire, with staff observing the two-minute silence at 11:00 BST.
The arboretum is currently closed to visitors due to the coronavirus pandemic.
BBC Radio 5 Live
Peter Stevens has told BBC Radio 5 Live about the emotional moment he saw his father for the first time.
For many families, VE Day marked the point where they could be reunited after a long separation.
Born in December 1939, Peter had no memory of his father, who had been fighting in North Africa and Italy for most of his early life.
"There was a face at the back window and I looked up and my grandparents said 'that’s your father' and that’s remained with me all my life, that moment," Peter said.
"That was the first time I remember seeing him."
Image source, PA MediaA skytyping display has taken place to mark VE Day and pay tribute to front-line workers.
Messages including We Will Meet Again and Thank You were etched in the sky over Henstridge airfield in Somerset.
The display was commissioned by the Department for Transport, which has recently changed the law to allow skytyping and skywriting to take place.
The techniques were made illegal in the UK in the 1960s over safety concerns but are used in many countries such as the US, Australia, France and Spain.
Image source, PA Media
Image source, Getty ImagesA programme of music and memories to celebrate Victory in Europe Day is available to listen to on BBC Sounds.
Put together by BBC Radio York and BBC Archives, it is part of the Music & Dementia at the BBC initiative., external
The programme features events as they unfolded, including the breaking news announcement of VE Day on the BBC on 8 May 1945.
Hear from people celebrating across England with clips from Newcastle, Hull, York, Liverpool, Birmingham, Coventry, Portsmouth, Dorset, Dover and London.
The programme also features music that was broadcast on VE Day on the BBC, plus other wartime favourites from Dame Vera Lynn, Gracie Fields and Glenn Miller.
Claire Gilbody-Dickerson
BBC News
Image source, Jane StoneJane Stone is determined to celebrate the fallen of World War Two
A woman from Kent has decorated the front and back of her home with Union flags as she resolves to remember the fallen regardless of lockdown.
Jane Stone, 51 and from Crayford, will be tuning in for Winston Churchill's speech at 15:00 BST before she blasts some 1940s tunes from her garden for a "street party" with her family and neighbours, who, in line with social distancing, will only join from their own gardens.
Image source, Jane StoneThe 51-year-old said celebrations will "still be lovely"
Standing proudly in a red shirt to match the flags and balloons in her garden, she said she hopes the decorations will "cheer people up" as "everyone is down at the moment" due to the pandemic.
"I think it’s really important for everyone to remember the sacrifices people made throughout the years and all the people who died during the wars," she told the BBC.
Image source, Jane StoneMrs Stone will try to have a social distanced party with neighbours
Image source, Jane StonePimm's, sandwiches and scones will be enjoyed during the celebration
Mrs Stone's plans to stay at the Towerbridge Hotel in London to be "right in the thick" of VE Day celebrations fell through when lockdown came into place.
But she said "even though it’s just us, me, my husband and my son, it will still be lovely".
VE Day: The UK holds two minute silence on 75th anniversary
Although the UK remains in lockdown because of the coronavirus outbreak, it has not stopped the country marking the 75th anniversary of VE Day.
Three hours ago, the country stopped for a two-minute silence to remember those who fought and lost their lives in World War Two.
You can see how people marked the moment in our video above.
Coronavirus: Isolating friends, 97 and 92, spend VE Day anniversary together
A 97-year-old war veteran who spent VE Day in hospital after his plane was shot down will spend the 75th anniversary with his new friend, aged 92, who he has been isolating with.
Doug Vince, who flew bombers out of Suffolk during World War Two, met Margaret Maxwell, from Essex, at a garden party two years ago. The pair decided to spend the coronavirus lockdown together instead of being lonely.
Mr Vince recalled: "The pilot landed with the plane on fire.
"I grabbed a fire extinguisher and it was in the fire, so it burned the middle out of my hand."
BBC Radio 5 Live
Bletchley Park veteran Betty Lawrie has told BBC Radio 5 Live her memories of celebrating VE Day.
Betty's job involved monitoring radio messages at the top-secret code breaking centre, and she was on night duty when she saw some of the first messages saying the war had ended in Europe.
She headed to London with friends including Valerie Glassborow, the Duchess of Cambridge's grandmother, where she said they got "rather pickled".
Bletchley Park veteran Betty Lawrie describes drinking gin in Green Park with her friends.
Image source, Bletchley Park EstateThat was the final German military message decoded by the Bletchley codebreakers.
It was sent by Lieutenant Kunkel from a German military radio network, codenamed BROWN.
A few days prior, a German soldier based on the Danish coast asked his radio control whether they had any spare cigarettes.
"No cigarettes here," came the reply.
These and other messages released by Bletchley Park offer insight into the real people behind the machinery, GCHQ historian Tony Comer says.
Neil Heath
BBC News Online
"I thought the street party was all organised for my birthday."
Robert Mason was born in Filbert Street, Leicester, in 1941, and was celebrating his fourth birthday on VE Day.
"All I can remember is the excitement of it all," he said.
"My photo [from VE Day 1945] reveals all the mums and wives and us children, because our fathers hadn't come come back yet," said the 79-year-old.
"We were very fortunate that my father came through the war unscathed, but he never talked about what he went through."
Image source, Robert MasonThe coastline at Bamburgh is spectacular on any day, but it looks even more special thanks to the giant Union flag etched in the sand to mark VE Day.
Almost the same size as seven tennis courts, the 1,275m sq display took castle maintenance manager Andrew Heeley four hours to draw.
Mr Heeley, who lives at the castle with his family, said the preparation had given him "a few sleepless nights".
"There was a lot of measuring, calculating and planning for it to be accurate and to scale up, as well as taking into consideration the tides, which are especially high at the moment due to the Super Flower Moon – and making sure I got it the right way up.”
It pays tribute "to the dedication and service of the entire Second World War generation - from the British, Commonwealth and Allied Forces to those who served on the home front and the sacrifices they made," castle owner Francis Watson Armstrong added.
Image source, PA Media"The world’s oldest Supermarine Spitfire Mk1" is illuminated in red, white and blue to mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day, the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford says.
Image source, Royal Air Force Museum CosfordIt is on display at the Shropshire site, which said the RAF museum, in London and Cosford, the National Army Museum and the National Museum of the Royal Navy have joined forces to host a celebration - with a virtual VE Day 75 festival, external online from Thursday to Saturday.
This brings to life stories of those who helped deliver victory.
The Spitfire's inventor, RJ Mitchell, from Stoke-on-Trent, died in 1937, just over 12 months after it first took to the skies.
In 2003, he was picked as Greatest Midlander in the BBC’s online, TV and radio vote, ahead of William Shakespeare and composer Sir Edward Elgar.
Image source, Royal Air Force Museum Cosford
Image source, Barnes familyThe Barnes family, from Brecon, in Wales, decorated their house and dressed up to mark VE Day.
"My husband is a veteran Royal Marine commando," Alison Barnes told the BBC.
"He decorated the house. He is in the photo with me and our two daughters, one a cadet corporal in Brecon detachment army cadets.
"We dressed up to try to imagine what it would have been like as a military family at the end of the war."
Image source, Barnes familyBBC Radio 5 Live
Before the coronavirus lockdown, there was a plan to have town criers read out a VE Day proclamation at the furthest edges of the UK.
Phil Northcott was due to be doing that at Land's End, but is now doing it from his own doorstep.
He gave Adrian Chiles a short taster...
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Image source, otherResidents in Hilton, a village near Cambridge, have organised a scarecrow walk as part of their VE Day commemorations.
Rebecca and James Hutchings set up a scout troop when they moved into the area after leaving university three years ago.
Their scarecrows contrast the requirements for children today compared to on this day in 1945.
While there are no formal VE Day services taking place in South Tyneside, flags are being flown above South Shields Town Hall and the colours of the Union flag will be beamed on to the Edwardian building and clock tower later.
The mayor of South Tyneside, Councillor Norman Dick, has urged people to "give thanks to the Second World War generation from the safety of their own homes".
He has encouraged people to hold indoor picnics, afternoon teas and "raise a celebratory toast to heroes at home".
Image source, South Tyneside CouncilIris Palmer remembers opening the door and being greeted by hordes of people storming onto the streets to celebrate what became known as VE Day.
Those who lived through it share their memories of that historic occasion.
VE Day remembered by care home residents
VE Day: The people who were there