King Leads VJ Day Commemorations as UK Marks 80th Anniversary of Japan's Surrender

King Charles led VJ Day commemorations in the UK as a national service of remembrance and a two-minute silence marked the 80th anniversary of Japan's surrender in the second world war and the end of the six-year-long conflict.

- Caroline Davies

He was joined by Queen Camilla; the prime minister, Keir Starmer; and veterans who served in the east Asia theatres of war as wreaths were laid at the National Memorial Arboretum service in Staffordshire.

Powerful testimonies read aloud recalled the terrible cost of war, while a flypast featured the Red Arrows and second world war aircraft, including a Spitfire, a Hurricane and a Lancaster bomber.

Among the guests of honour were 33 veterans, aged from 96 to 105. Royal Navy veteran Alfred Conway from Lincolnshire, watched as his great-granddaughter laid a wreath on the Burma railway memorial at the arboretum. George Durrant, who served in the Intelligence Corps, appeared on stage to urge people not to forget the sacrifices made by his comrades.

Durrant enlisted as a private in 1942 and trained to be a tank driver, before volunteering for a special mission, which turned out to be service in Burma.