VE Day: Cathedrals and churches ring out their bells across the UK

On Saturday at 11am churches and cathedrals will ring out their bells in a sign of victory, signifying the end to the years the bells were silent during the Second World War.

In the evening, a concert will take place at Horse Guards Parade in London, hosted by the Royal British Legion, with performances from Katherine Jenkins, Pixie Lott and Status Quo.

Hundreds of smaller community events have been planned across the country after schools and local authorities were encouraged to take part.

Elsewhere, Jersey will celebrate the liberation of the Channel Islands – the only part of the British Isles occupied by the Germans during Second World War.

On Sunday, the Queen is due to attend a service of thanksgiving at London's Westminster Abbey.

Around 1,000 veterans and their families will join members of the Royal Family, politicians, members of the Armed Forces and representatives of the Allied nations and Commonwealth countries that fought alongside Britain for a service of thanksgiving at Westminster Abbey.

A parade of bands, veterans and current servicemen and women will then make their way from the abbey along Whitehall – past the balcony where Churchill made a historic speech before vast crowds – before a reception in St James's Park.

There will also be a fly-past over central London by the Red Arrows, following a fly-by of Second World War aircraft, including the Lancaster bomber and Spitfire and Hurricane fighters.

Trafalgar Square will also be decorated with bunting and the ensigns of each of the Armed Forces on Sunday, while the Band of the Grenadier Guards will perform music from the 1940s opposite Nelson's Column.