VE Day 70: A Party To Remember was a 1940s themed concert and party held on Saturday 9 May 2015 on Horse Guards Parade in London. It was hosted by The Royal British Legion, as part of the three-day celebration to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day.
The concert was presented by Chris Evans, and performers included (in order of first appearance):
Diversity – dancing to Puttin' On the Ritz and Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing)Richard E. Grant – Ministry of Information adviceColin Salmon – Ministry of Information adviceAlexander Armstrong – We Must All Stick Together (by Ralph Butler & Raymond Wallace), London PrideCollabro - We Must All Stick Together, Wish Me Luck as You Wave Me GoodbyeBernard Cribbins – words of Jeffrey Illey, ten year-old evacueeStatus Quo – In the Army NowRobert Lindsay – Winston Churchill May 1940, August 1940 and May 1945 speechesLaura Wright – Wish Me Luck as You Wave Me GoodbyeKatherine Jenkins – He Wears A Pair of Silver Wings, A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square, We'll Meet AgainPixie Lott – SallyChas & Dave – Run Rabbit Run, Leaning on a Lamp-post, When I'm Cleaning Windows, You Are My Sunshine, We're Going to Hang out the Washing on the Siegfried Line, Roll Out the BarrelElaine Paige – (There'll Be Bluebirds Over) The White Cliffs of DoverHoneysuckle Weeks – Chotie writing to DickerLaurence Fox – Dicker Writing to ChotieGregory Porter – As Time Goes ByIan Lavender – words of Bill Miles, Home Guard volunteerLaura Wright, Pixie Lott and Rebecca Ferguson – Boogie Woogie Bugle BoyBlue – Five Minutes MoreStrictly Come Dancing professional dancers – A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square, In the MoodJulia Sawalha – words of Marion Gardner, Land Army girlAlfie Boe – You'll Never Walk Alone, Run, We'll Meet AgainJane Horrocks – words of Lt. George. F . Morrison, 7th Battalion of the Royal HighlandersMartin Shaw – For the FallenA message from Dame Vera Lynn was also read out, filmed interviews were shown and actor Adrian Lester read an account of fighter pilot Hugh Dundas. World War II veterans including Chelsea pensioners were guests of honour.
When reading the letter written by Lieutenant Morrison, the last he would ever write, actress Jane Horrocks was overcome with emotion.
The concert was broadcast live on BBC Radio 2 from 7.30pm to 10.00pm, with a later broadcast on BBC One and BBC One HD from 8.30pm to 10.25 pm. Ken Bruce provided commentary for the radio broadcast and the event was produced by Mark Simpson for the BBC.
