Princess Anne honours soldiers as parachutists recreate D-Day landings

The Princess Royal hailed the “unwavering determination” of the allied forces as hundreds of parachutists jumped over Normandy on the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings.

As tributes moved from Portsmouth to the beaches of northern France, the Princess, joined by her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, unveiled a statue of a Second World War Canadian Royal Regina Rifleman that will “tell the story of loyalty, bravery and duty” for generations to come.

The Princess has been Colonel-in-Chief of the regiment since 1982.

Speaking of the moment, in 1944, when they assembled across the Channel awaiting the largest amphibious invasion in history, the Princess said: “One can only imagine the sense of trepidation; anticipation and probably fear of the unknown.”

The Princess went on to a service at Bayeux Cathedral, and back to the cemetery for a late-night vigil as president of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

It comes after some 400 British, Belgian and US paratroopers took part in a parachute jump, descending into a historic D-Day drop zone to recreate the airborne liberation of Normandy in June 1944.

The King, joined by the Queen, the Prince of Wales, the Prime Minister and some 500 veterans, also paid an emotional tribute to those who served during the Second World War, adding: “We are all eternally in their debt.”

“The stories of courage, resilience and solidarity we have heard today and throughout our lives cannot fail to move us, to inspire us and to remind us of what we owe to that great wartime generation - now, tragically, dwindling to so few,” he said.

Meanwhile the Prince of Wales said his wife the Princess of Wales would have “loved” to have joined in with the commemorations as she continues to recover following her cancer diagnosis.

06:28 PM BST

That’s all for today

Thanks for tuning in to today’s live blog. We’ll be back tomorrow to bring you all the latest from the second day of the D-Day 80th anniversary commemorations.

Key moments from today:

• The Prince of Wales said his wife the Princess of Wales would have “loved” to have joined in with the commemorations marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day as she continues to recover following her cancer diagnosis.

• Princess Anne gave a reading of a poem at the Royal British Legion Service of Commemoration in Bayeux, where she spoke with more than a dozen veterans who saw action on D-Day

• A British female paratrooper has jumped into Normandy to commemorate D-Day for the first time.

• A military paratrooper jumped into Sannerville this afternoon with a chicken teddy called Myrtle tucked into his zip-up canvas bag, in memory of a real parachuting WW2 chicken.

• Hundreds of Armed Forces personnel parachuted over Normandy to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

• The Princess Royal paid tribute to the “loyalty, bravery and duty” of Canadian forces in the Second World War, as she unveiled a statue to honour them in Normandy today.

• The Prince of Wales paid tribute to the families who “watched their loved ones go into battle” as they left for the largest seaborne invasion in history in June 1944.

• The King called on the public to “always remember” the sacrifices of D-Day veterans to whom “we are all eternally in their debt”, in his biggest public occasion since his cancer diagnosis.

• The Prime Minister said “we must never forget how much we owe” those who took part in D-Day.

05:47 PM BST

Watch: Princess of Wales ‘would have loved to be here’

The Prince of Wales said his wife the Princess of Wales would have “loved” to have joined in with the commemorations marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day as she continues to recover following her cancer diagnosis.

Footage posted on Twitter showed The Prince speaking to a veteran following a major event in Portsmouth on Wednesday, in which he appeared to say “she is” when asked if his wife was “getting any better”.

The prince added: “She’d love to be here today.”

He told the veteran about how Kate’s grandmother worked at Bletchley Park during the Second World War and was one of a group of women who “never spoke about anything until the very end”, adding: “It was all very secret.”

05:43 PM BST

Starmer takes a ride on a military landing craft

Sir Keir Starmer toured Portsmouth Harbour with Second World War veteran Len Chivers and naval cadets following a D-Day commemoration event.

A member of a nearby group of tourists shouted “Go on, Keir”, as the Labour leader left the jetty in an LCPV landing craft similar to those used on D-Day.

The craft itself was used to land commandos at San Carlos Water during the Falklands War.

05:11 PM BST

Princess Royal reads poem at Bayeux commemoration

Princess Anne has given a reading of a poem at the Royal British Legion Service of Commemoration in Bayeux.

The poem, At the British War Cemetery, Bayeux, was written by Charles Causley after he visited the site - where many of those who died during World War Two are buried.

It describes Causley’s shock as he sees the sheer number of gravestones, and the age of those who died.

04:47 PM BST

Veteran shares cheeky joke with Princess Royal

At the Bayeux War Cemetery, where veterans and their families have gathered for the annual Royal British Legion service of commemoration, the Princess Royal has spoken to more than a dozen men who saw action on D-Day.

With their medals pinned to their chests, and some wearing their caps of old, the former servicemen spent a few minutes talking to the Princess over tea in a tent.

Some, at the age of 100, insisted on standing to chat, as Princess Anne shouted to be heard over the buzz of conversation and a military band playing outside.

She told one the weather has proved the “perfect conditions for it”, holding hands with several in turn as she made her way around the tables.

Jack Mortimer, 100, from the Royal Army Ordnance Corps landed on Sword Beach at the age of 20, driving as shells and mortar flew overhead and eventually advancing to Caen.

Pointing to the cemetery, the largest Commonwealth War Graves Commission of the Second World War in France, he told the Princess: “The main reason I’m here is those men out there.”

With a twinkle in his eye, he also tried out one of his best chat up lines on her, leaving her in gales of laughter before reassuring her “I’m not going to kiss you”.

The Princess told Donald Jones, 99, who landed at 8am on D-Day as a Royal Navy gunner on a Landing Craft Tank that she does her job “to meet people like you”.

Richard Trelease, 99, a Royal Navy radar operator and navigator, was among those who insisted on standing to talk to the Princess. She remarked, smiling, on the “standards”.

“We’re not going to live a lot longer,” he said afterwards, when asked why he came back for the anniversary. “Therefore it’s the right thing, to come and see the beaches again.”

04:36 PM BST

‘It made me think of the people who didn’t come back’

Emotional D-Day veterans have spoken of how the national commemoration of the Normandy landings left them in tears as they remembered those who lost their lives.

A total of 21 veterans had a chance to meet the King, Queen, Prince of Wales and Prime Minister at the conclusion of the event held in Portsmouth.

Roy Hayward, 98, who served as a reserve tank crewman and landed on Gold Beach, received a standing ovation when he appeared on stage during the show.

After meeting members of the royal family, he said: “I thoroughly enjoyed every one of them, I thought they were super actually, I was most impressed by the way they chatted to me and were so friendly.

“They asked me how I got on and how I had my legs blown off.

“I lost both of my legs but that’s nothing in comparison with what happened to other people and that’s always the attitude I’ve had.”

“It made me feel reminiscent and it has made me think of all the people who didn’t come back.”

04:29 PM BST

Pictured: the King joins veterans to pay their respects

04:02 PM BST

President Macron arrives in Normandy

French President Emmanuel Macron, who commemorated French resistance fighters in Brittany earlier today, has arrived at a ceremony in Saint-Lô, Normandy.

The town was almost entirely destroyed by Allied bombardments during D-Day and the Battle of Normandy.

Mr Macron is expected to pay tribute to the civilians that were killed there.

03:51 PM BST

First woman to pass gruelling army assault course jumps over Normandy

A British female paratrooper has jumped into Normandy to commemorate D-Day for the first time.

Lance Corporal Addy Carter, of 16 Medical Regiment, was among the hundreds of paratroopers who dropped into Sannerville this afternoon to mark 80 years since the Normandy beach landings.

Lance Corporal Carter, 22, told The Telegraph it felt “phenomenal” to be the first woman to make such a jump.

“To be able to be a part of history, especially on the 80th anniversary, is amazing,” she said, adding she felt “honoured” to play her part.

In 2022 Lance Corporal Carter became the first female soldier to pass the All Arms Pre Parachute Selection, known as P Company.

She said that since she achievement she has had lots of female soldiers contacting her for advice on how to pass the selection process.

Asked what has held female soldiers back in the past, Lance Corporal Carter said: “I think it’s just the stigma of people think, you know, women shouldn’t be paratroopers, they shouldn’t be jumping. So, you know, to be able to set that standard and show the men that you know, the girls can do it, we can pass.”

She added: “I think since then I have seen an increase of females attempting the course.”

03:42 PM BST

Royal Marines veteran served with King’s father

Keith Whiting, 98, who served with the Royal Marines, said that he was able to share a joke with the King and told him that he had served on the same ship as his father, the late Duke of Edinburgh.

He said: “It was marvelous, we shared two or three jokes, I served on board the HMS Ramillies when Prince Philip was on there, so we talked about one or two things.

“It was such a marvelous turnout.”

03:33 PM BST

‘I served D-Day victims their last meal’

Betty Withers, 99, was WRNS cook on Hayling Island who served a final meal to troops before they departed on D-Day.

She said: “I still remember the faces of the lads the day they went. We knew that something was happening so we had to get everything ready for them. It’s my sad thought that I gave some of the lads their last meal.”

03:26 PM BST

104-year-old veteran drew up D-Day Landings maps from Churchill’s war rooms

Christian Lamb, a Wren officer working at Combined Operations HQ in Whitehall, helped to plan the Normandy Landings from Winston Churchill’s secret war rooms, creating large scale maps to help those landing there to navigate their surroundings.

Christian, who will turn 104 on 19th July, said of the event: “I loved it, it was great fun. I managed to see the King and Queen and Prince William and it was nice to talk to them.”

Recalling D-Day, she said: “I was in London and I turned on my radio. I had known for ages that something was going to happen. I was terribly excited and waiting for the moment. I was making the maps for them to land... so people could identify where they were.”

Christian, an author and plant historian, said of meeting the King and Queen: “He was very friendly. I talked to his wife. And I said to her that her name was like my favourite flower, the Camellia and she said she liked them too.”

She was accompanied by her daughter Felicity Rollo, 80, and the pair later travelled on to the commemorations in Normandy by helicopter.

02:52 PM BST

‘It made me cry’: veterans react to Southsea morning ceremony

Around 10 veterans and their families enjoyed lunch in the VVIP tent after the Southsea ceremony, where they were joined by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty, defence secretary Grant Shapps and veterans minister Johnny Mercer.

Vera Brett, 99, who was a 19-year-old Wren based in Portsmouth on D-Day, helped to develop a radar controlled gunnery at nearby Eastney.

“It has been a fantastic day. It’s something I never thought would happen,” she said. “I was only an ordinary Jenny Wren.”

She said of her meeting with the King: “He was charming, so lovely. They all were. They are so relaxed compared to how they used to be in the old days.”

She added of the event: “It made me cry. I can sing Vera Lynn songs still.”

02:45 PM BST

‘I don’t know how I’m still spared’

Some 11 veterans with the Spirit of Normandy Trust joined commemorations in Colleville-Montgomery today, sitting in the front row of the service with blankets on their laps.

Royal Navy veteran Alec Penstone, who served on HMS Campania, said: “I’m surprised I’m still here, I didn’t expect to be. I’m very lucky.”

About the ceremony, the 99-year-old said: “I realised how many of my wonderful shipmates... died. I don’t know how I’m still spared.”

02:30 PM BST

WW2 parachuting chicken dropped from 300 feet and earned its wings

Sgt Danny Mawson, a reservist with 4 para, jumped into Sannerville this afternoon with a chicken teddy called Myrtle tucked into his zip-up canvas bag.

It was in memory of lieutenant Joseph Glover, of the 10th parachute battalion, who in 1944 began jumping with the real-life Myrtle stowed inside his canvas bag, off the back of an argument with a soldier who insisted chickens could not fly.

Over the course of a few months, Myrtle ended up completing six jumps - with lieutenant Glover releasing her from his canvas bag at varying distances from the ground.

The highest drop she completed was 300 feet.

After she landed, she would loyally wait on the ground for Glover to collect her once he had completed his jump.

Having completed the assigned number of drops, Myrtle was awarded her parachute wings, which she wore around her neck on a plastic band.

It is exactly these kind of stories that Sgt Mawson, 37, believes need to be told to keep the memory of WW2 and D-Day alive.

“Younger generations don’t have a deep understanding of what went on here,” Sgt Mawson said, gesturing around the field in Sannerville as soldiers parachuted to the ground.

“If they hadn’t done what they did - there are things happening around the world today that could turn into what happened before, so that’s why it’s important to have the awareness of it.”

As for Myrtle, eventually lieutenant Glover took her on Operation Market Garden in his pack, which was fought in the Netherlands,  but she was killed in battle. Soldiers buried her on the battlefield that same day in September 1944.

02:23 PM BST

Princess of Wales ‘would have loved to be here’

One veteran told William he was on Juno beach and described it as “carnage”.

The D-Day hero asked William if the Princess of Wales was “getting better”.

William said: “She’d have loved to be here.”

The Princess is away from public duties while she undergoes treatment for cancer.

Speaking to another veteran, called Norman, William said: “We want you here five years time for the 85th.”

02:13 PM BST

Princess Royal honours Canadian forces with statue

The Princess Royal has paid tribute to the “loyalty, bravery and duty” of Canadian forces in the Second World War, as she unveiled a statue to honour them in Normandy today.

The Princess, speaking in English and French, called on the public to “never forget the sacrifices and determination” of the Royal Regina Rifles ahead of the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

Speaking of the moment, 80 years ago, when they assembled across the Channel awaiting the largest amphibious invasion in history, the Princess said: “One can only imagine the sense of trepidation; anticipation and probably fear of the unknown.”

In a section of her speech delivered in French, she described their “monumental effort” and “unwavering determination”.

The Princess added that she was “grateful for so many coming” to the commemoration event, where she “unveiled” a statue of a Second World War Canadian Royal Regina Rifleman that will “tell the story of loyalty, bravery and duty” for generations to come.

She was joined by Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence for a small outdoor ceremony to honour the bravery and sacrifice of the Royal Regina Rifles.

With three Canadian veterans, including just one surviving D-Day Riflemen, watching, she unveiled the larger-than-lifesize sculpture before joining a private reception with families.

The Princess has been Colonel-in-Chief of the regiment since 1982.

She and Sir Tim inspected the troops and the military band before viewing the statue. It had technically already been unveiled ahead of her arrival, with heavy tarpaulin being taken off so it was on full show for veterans during the event.

02:01 PM BST

Descendants of D-Day veterans take part in jump

Among the 250 soldiers from the British Army’s 16 Air Assault Brigade was Sergeant Danny Mawson, whose great-great-uncle Major William Tighe-Woods landed on Sword Beach on D-Day.

Also jumping was Lieutenant Max Phillips, a keen historian who wore a smock worn by Colour Sergeant Tommy Alderson, who jumped during the Normandy landings.

01:58 PM BST

Pictured: Parachute jumpers touch down in northern France

01:54 PM BST

Canadians bow out of parachute drop

No Canadians are involved with today’s drop because of an unexpected incident with their aircraft.

Somewhat different to 80 years ago, as soon as the Paras land in France, they have to get their passports inspected before they can come and join the designated VIP area containing refreshments.

01:22 PM BST

Pictured: The King shares a joke with D-Day veteran

01:18 PM BST

Prince of Wales: ‘We’re here to thank you’

After the ceremony, the King and the Prince of Wales chatted to the veterans who took part who watched from the stands.

Prince William told them he found it “very moving” listening to the stories and the letters read out during the event, “even now, 80 years later.”

When a veteran thanked him for attending, William said: “No, we’re here to thank you.”

He chatted to another veteran about the D-Day landings, saying: “it was a whole logistics mission everything about it was enormous; huge.

“We’re where to say a big thank you to you and all your colleagues who didn’t make it back.”

The King asked one veteran how it felt coming back and reliving the stories.

“It’s amazing how you’ve all kept yourselves in such great shape after all these years,” he said.

Chatting to one paratrooper, he said: “At least they dropped you in the right place. Because that’s always the worry.”

The King was told that the paratrooper would turn 100 in August.

“Well I hope we’ll have your card ready,” he replied.

William spoke to an elderly code breaker who worked at Bletchley Park. “My wife’s grandmother did the same sort of thing as you,” he said. “Catherine only found out about it at the end of her life.”

01:11 PM BST

Rishi Sunak greets veterans in Portsmouth

01:08 PM BST

First parachuters touch down

The first troops jumped from an Airbus A400M , there khaki green shoots bursting into the air as they descended to the ground.

There was a brief moment where two parachute jumpers appeared to draw perilously close to one another, but crisis was averted, with the first airborne landings going off without a hitch.

01:00 PM BST

Watch: Hundreds of troops parachute over Normandy

Hundreds of Armed Forces personnel are about to parachute over Normandy to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

As tributes moved from Portsmouth to the beaches of northern France, some 400 British, Belgian, Canadian and US paratroopers are set to take part in the jump, descending into a historic D-Day drop zone to recreate the airborne liberation of Normandy in June 1944.

12:59 PM BST

King and Queen share emotional moment

12:36 PM BST

Red arrows flypast

Attendees at the D-Day commemorative event joined together in a rendition of the national anthem before observing a gun salute.

Frigate HMS St Albans fired off multiple shots as it passed Southsea Common on the Solent.

There was a brief spell of silence before the King and Queen then departed the event to more applause.

The crowd were then treated to a flypast from The Red Arrows, in formation and trailing the team’s trademark red, white, and blue plumes of smoke in their wakes.

12:30 PM BST

Rishi Sunak recites D-Day military address

Rishi Sunak read an address by Field Marshal Montgomery, which was delivered to the troops ahead of the D-Day landings.

In his contribution to the commemorative event in Portsmouth, the Prime Minister read out the short address which began: “The time has come to deal the enemy a terrific blow in Western Europe. The blow will be struck by the combined sea, land and air forces of the Allies together constituting one great allied team, under the supreme command of General Eisenhower.”

“To us is given the honour of striking a blow for freedom which will live in history; and in the better days that lie ahead men will speak with pride of our doings. We have a great and a righteous cause.”

12:27 PM BST

Veterans and performances mark anniversary in Normandy and Portsmouth

12:24 PM BST

Prince of Wales hails bravery of loved ones left behind

The Prince of Wales paid tribute to the families who “watched their loved ones go into battle” as they left for the largest seaborne invasion in history in June 1944.

Addressing the crowd at Southsea Common without the Princess of Wales, who is away from public duties while she undergoes treatment for cancer, the Prince said: “We will always remember those who served and those who waved them off.

“The mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, sons and daughters who watched their loved ones go into battle, unsure if they would ever return.

“Today we remember the bravery of those who crossed this sea to liberate Europe. Those who ensured that Operation Overlord was a success. And those who waited for their safe return.”

12:15 PM BST

Ian Glen gives rousing weather report amid re-enactments

As part of a series of re-enactments dramatising the build-up to D-Day as part of today’s commemoration event, actor Iain Glen gave a weather report taken from a telegram at the time.

Bad weather over the English Channel meant Operation Neptune, the largest seaborne invasion in history, had already been delayed for a nerve-shredding 24 hours.

Glen received a round of applause for his stirring delivery of the weather forecast, causing host Helen Mirren to joke: “He deserved that for the weather report didn’t he.”

12:08 PM BST

Pictured: King Charles offers emotional tribute to WW2 veterans

11:59 AM BST

King: ‘We are eternally in their debt’

The King has called on public to “always remember” the sacrifices of D-Day veterans, adding: “We are all eternally in their debt.”

He said: “As we give thanks to all those who gave so much to win the victory, whose fruits we still enjoy to this day, let us once again commit ourselves to always remember, cherish and honour those who served that day, and to live up to the freedoms they died for by balancing rights with civic responsibilities to our country.

“For we are all eternally in their debt.”

11:56 AM BST

King pays tribute to the combined efforts of the allies

11:48 AM BST

King: ‘It is our duty to remember their service’

The King has paid tribute to WW2 veterans, saying it is “our duty” to remember “their service and their “sacrifice”.

The king said the stories of “courage, resilience and solidarity, which we have heard today, and throughout our lives, cannot fail to move us, to inspire us, and to remind us of what we owe to that great war-time generation now tragically dwindling to so few.

“It is our duty to ensure that we and future generations do not forget their service and their sacrifice in replacing tyranny with freedom.

“Our rights and the liberty won at such terrible cost bring with them responsibility to others in the exercise of that liberty.”

11:41 AM BST

Rishi Sunak: ‘We must never forget how much we owe’

The Prime Minister has said “we must never forget how much we owe” those who took part in D-Day.

In a message in the programme for the D-Day 80 national commemoration in Portsmouth, Rishi Sunak wrote: “Shortly after midnight on 6 June 1944, thousands of paratroopers began to drop from the skies above Normandy.

“A fleet of ships set out to cross the rough seas of the English Channel.

“By 0730, over 156,000 men from 14 nations were leaping from their landing craft into a storm of bullets, to take the beaches from which the allied liberation of Europe would begin.

“We gather to honour their courage and sacrifice. We must never forget how much we owe them.

“In their memory, we must create a country where all our veterans are treated as the heroes they are.

“And we must dedicate ourselves again to the moral cause for which they fought and died 80 years ago - the cause of freedom and democracy.”

11:38 AM BST

Veteran receives standing ovation

Complete silence from the crowd as video footage of the veterans was played on screen.

Veteran Roy Hayward was given a standing ovation and a lengthy clap as he was introduced on stage, before describing how his legs were both amputated below the knee but that he considered himself “one of the lucky ones”

11:35 AM BST

Extract from moving letter read by Prince of Wales

The Prince of Wales read from a letter by Captain Alastair Bannerman of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment, addressed to his wife and written in his diary on the morning of D-Day:

11:29 AM BST

Prince of Wales takes the stage

The Prince of Wales gave a reading taken from the diary of Captain Alastair Bannerman, a soldier who was part of the D-Day landings. The excerpt took the form of a letter, written by Captain Bannerman in his diary on the morning of the landings, addressed to his wife.

William said he was “deeply honoured” to join D-Day veterans in Southsea and to recognise the bravery of those such as John Haddock, who participated in the Normandy landings.

He said: “Our guests of honour today are those veterans from the Normandy landing, that came from across our nation and from all walks of life to join in the fight against tyranny.

“Many of those that took up arms had never seen combat before, some were still only in their teens.

“In their letters and diaries we see their great strength.”

In his closing remarks, the Prince used a quote from Rupert Brooke’s poem, The Soldier.

He said: “We will always remember those who served and those who waved them off.

“The mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, sons and daughters who watched their loved ones go into battle, unsure if they would ever return. “

11:28 AM BST

King declares ‘profound admiration’ for veterans

The King has spoken of his “profound admiration and respect” for those who took part in D-Day.

In a message in the programme for the D-Day 80 national commemoration in Portsmouth, Charles wrote: “On 6 June 1944, following an intense period of preparation uniting military planning and civilian industrial ingenuity, nearly 160,000 young men landed under enemy fire on the beaches of Normandy.

“Each of these courageous sailors, soldiers and aviators risked his life so that others might live in freedom and in peace. Many were never to return.

“Eighty years later, it remains our solemn duty to continue to honour the outstanding gallantry, service and sacrifice of those who took part in that perilous mission.

“We do so with the most profound admiration and respect, and with everlasting gratitude.”

11:19 AM BST

Pictured: Prince William applauds during memorial event

11:17 AM BST

Flypast greeted with rapturous applause

A big cheer went up from the crowd in the sunshine as a flypast kicked off the commemorative event in Southsea.

The jets flew low over the crowd from behind, sweeping over the site, behind the stage, out over the sea and round in a loop as a military band amassed on stage.

Elsewhere, Rishi Sunak received a rapturous welcome from schoolchildren who cheered and waved their Union flags as he arrived in the Royal Box. He gave a cheery wave in response .

11:14 AM BST

Pictured: Memorial events get under way

11:00 AM BST

King’s biggest public appearance since cancer diagnosis

Today will be the biggest moment in the King’s calendar since his cancer diagnosis, and he was determined to make it happen. The Telegraph first reported that this D-Day anniversary was at the heart of plans for his return to public duty before Easter, and today is the day. He wanted to honour veterans, and do his bit to ensure their efforts are remembered for a new generation.

There will be some tweaks to the schedule. Still undergoing cancer treatment and under the supervision of doctors, he will visit Portsmouth today before a morning ceremony in Ver-Sur-Mer, Normandy, for the French leg of British commemorations tomorrow.

Both days will be a little shorter than they would have been if he was in full health. The King will arrive later than the Prince of Wales for the Portsmouth event today, conserving his energy for the all-important part of meeting veterans.

In France, he will focus on the British memorial, leaving son and heir Prince William to represent him at the Canadian ceremony at Juno Beach, and the international ceremony with world leaders including Joe Biden at Omaha.

The King would no doubt be the first to underplay his own efforts to attend, in the face of the 100-year-old military veterans travelling in their wheelchairs to honour their friends.

But it will be an effort nonetheless, for a 75-year-old King for whom duty comes first.

10:58 AM BST

President Biden touches down in Paris

The US president Joe Biden was greeted by the French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal as he arrived in Paris this morning to attend D-Day 80th anniversary events.

The president is due to meet his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is visiting Normandy for the today’s commemorations.

10:54 AM BST

Bayeaux transformed for D-Day commemorations

In the early morning in Bayeux, a farmers market is bustling with tourists, the Gendarmerie ride slowly through the streets on horseback, and Union flags flutter from shop fronts and window boxes.

The small town in Normandy is preparing for D-Day commemorations, with temporary steel fences being put up to filter the expected crowds. A handful of middle-aged men dressed as Second World War- era American forces are already walking the streets in reenactment, in leather boots and caps that will no doubt see them greeted and thanked as veterans before people notice they are a good 30 years too young to have seen action on the beaches.

At the cemetery, the neat rows of gravestones marking the final resting place of those who gave their lives for freedom are immaculate. Tourists roam quietly, reading the inscriptions.

Shops and houses are decked out in UK, US and Canadian flags as a mark of respect to 1944 liberators. Messages saying “welcome” and “thank you” are everywhere, the town given over to a message of gratitude for heroics 80 years ago that changed the course of the war. The care and attention to the war dead, and the respect for those who served, is evident everywhere.

For veterans and their families, particularly those who remember lost friends and relatives, that care must be a great comfort. Their actions, and their people, are not forgotten.

10:49 AM BST

D-Day anniversary timetable

10:35 AM BST

Lord Cameron in attendance in Potsmouth

10:33 AM BST

Princess Royal to join veterans in Normandy

The Princess Royal will join British and Canadian military veterans in Normandy during a series of events today to commemorate the 80th anniversary

In her role as Colonel-in-Chief of the Royal Regina Rifles, a Canadian military unit who stormed Juno Beach 80 years ago, Princess Anne, alongside her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, will unveil a statute of a rifleman from the regiment and later attend a reception with former soldiers.

During her day in Normandy, Anne will attend the annual service of remembrance at Bayeux Cathedral where she will read a lesson and take part in a procession, led by pipers from France, Germany and the UK.

It will return the royal to the military cemetery for a vigil where she will lay a posy at the Grave of the Unknown Soldier and give a speech on behalf of the nation.

10:31 AM BST

Starmer snapped at D-Day anniversary event

Sir Keir Starmer and Rishi Sunak are both attending D-Day commemorations today, as election campaigning takes a backwards step amid a host of events to mark the 80th anniversary of the historic landings.

10:21 AM BST

D-Day commemorations get under way

Hello and welcome to our coverage of the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings.

The King is due to give a speech this morning in Portsmouth, where he will be joined by the Queen, the Prime Minister, and over 500 military veterans.

We’ll be bringing you all the latest updates throughout the day.