00:00On the 8th of May 1945, Germany officially surrendered and after nearly six years of
00:10fighting, World War II came to an end. All across Kent, towns have been celebrating VE Day.
00:18And the community of Feathersham has come together today to celebrate the 80th anniversary of VE Day.
00:25There's a variety of stalls and even some familiar faces walking around. Many were dressed the part
00:31for Feathersham in the 40s. There was singing, dancing and even a historical figure wandering
00:37around. Well it's a marvellous event obviously. You only have to look just up this little street
00:42and there are people, all the stall holders are all appropriate but it's the visitors that are
00:48dressed up. They're bringing back the spirit of the 40s. Whilst remembering those who lost their lives
00:54fighting, the event also celebrated the work of the British people on the home front and one group
01:00that stood out was the women. They kept the nation going by knitting things, looking after children,
01:06digging in the fields, going to the factories. Things that they were never allowed to do before
01:10and I think it all brought the country together. Over three million women volunteered for the Red
01:16Cross and six million worked in factories. The Friends in the 40s group were helping to shine a
01:23light on some other home front efforts including the local defence volunteers.
01:29Yes, I think TV with Dad's army, very comical as it is, does give a slightly false impression of how
01:37things would have been but it was about the time when the threat of German invasion was particularly high
01:44the way. With Dunkirk happening as well, if things had gone the wrong way then Britain would have lost
01:50its army effectively and local defence volunteers would have been called upon if needs be to sacrifice
01:57themselves to help defend the country. The group was made up of men aged 17 to 65 who, for a variety of
02:06reasons, were unable to fight on the front line. Up and down the streets the spirit of the 1940s was as
02:13present today as it was 80 years ago. A brilliant atmosphere celebrating such an important time
02:19and day in British history.
02:28Etterley Reynolds for KMTV
Comments