Friday 8 May marks the 75^th anniversary since the end of World War II in Europe and a national bank holiday.

On VE (Victory in Europe) Day in 1945, millions took to the streets to celebrate peace after years of devastating war.

Due to the UK’s current lockdown restrictions this year’s celebrations will look slightly different that originally intended but the University will be turning to its academic and professional community to help mark the event.

In the coming days the University will be sharing a series of blogs and photographs marking Nottingham’s role in the war.

This includes a selection of WW2 propaganda posters from Kathryn Steenson, of Manuscripts and Special Collections, an opinion piece from Professor Elizabeth Harvey, of the Department of History, on what we celebrate when we mark moments from history, as well as images of Nottingham during the blitz.

A blog on wartime-style rhetoric that is being echoed during the COVID-19 crisis has also been written by Ross Wilson in the Faculty of Arts.

Celebrate from Home
On Friday across the country a two minute silence has been planned for 11am, followed by a ‘toast to heroes’ at 3pm.

Members of the University, along with the rest of the country, are being encouraged to throw ‘Stay At Home Street Parties’ instead of the traditional neighbourhood gatherings and share these images on social media.

The idea behind a VE Day Stay At Home Street Party is that people can still celebrate the day while observing social distancing and staying at home. Please share any photos to @uniofnottingham on Instagram or Twitter using #veday75.

If you need inspirations, more ideas, recipes or tips on how to throw your own VE Day Stay At Home Street Party, the government have created a website dedicated to providing you with a full toolkit of resources.