Many celebrations are starting on Bank Holiday Monday, May 5, with a flypast and procession in London, there will also be smaller gatherings held by communities in every corner of the country, from larger celebrations in city centres, to humble street parties in the suburbs and rural villages.
On VE Day itself, the Department for Culture Media and Sport said a two-minute silence will be held at 12pm in all UK Government buildings.
Councils and local authorities have issued guidance on how the commemorations may affect public transport and road users and here Express.co.uk has tried to bring as much information as possible together for different parts of the UK.
Scroll down for our list of road closures in and event information near where you live…
READ MORE… ‘I kissed the ground and said ‘I am home’ – WW2 hero recounts VE Day memories
LONDON – There will be four days of commemorative events starting on Early May Bank Holiday (May 5) and running through to Thursday (May 8). On Monday in the capital at 12.10pm, a procession will depart from Parliament Square. It will travel along Whitehall and The Mall, finishing at the Queen Victoria Memorial. The flypast over The Mall and Buckingham Palace will take place at 1.45pm.
The procession will be an impressive display of pageantry by Regiments of the Household Division and Kings Troop Royal Horse Artillery, showcasing ceremonial traditions of the British Armed Forces.
On May 5, roads around Westminster will be closed for the military procession. This will affect driving and buses. Most of the impact will be from 6.30am until 5pm. Affected areas include Parliament Square, Whitehall and The Mall, following the route of the military procession.
Some bus routes in Westminster will be affected by road closures. Buses may be diverted or stop short of their normal destinations. These routes are affected (directly and indirectly):
3, 9, 11, 12, 15, 23, 24, 26, 29, 87, 88, 91, 139, 148, 159, 176, 453, C10, N3, N5, N9, N11, N15, N18, N20, N21, N26, N29, N41, N44, N53, N87, N89, N91, N97, N109, N113, N136, N155, N199, N279, N343, N381, N550 and N551
According to Transport for London, May 6-8 will see little or no disruption and Tube services will be running as normal throughout the four days.
MANCHESTER – Streets across Greater Manchester are to close between May 3 and May 11. Three streets in Sale have been granted permission by Trafford council to hold events. On Bank Holiday Monday, May 5, households in Mornington Road will party between 2pm and 7pm. On the same day people in Okehampton Crescent will do likewise between 12pm and 4pm.
On Saturday May 10, there will be a celebration of the end of the Second World War in Europe in the Trafford Centre at The Orient Stage and ‘horseshoe’ area. On Sunday May 11, at a time yet to be confirmed, there will be a service to commemorate VE Day at St Paul’s Church, Sale which the mayor will also attend.
WALSALL, WEST MIDLANDS – 12-26 Beddows Road & 15-29 Beddows Road (Arbury Grove to Rutland Street), Sunday, May 4, 2pm to 5pm, Station Road, Pelsall, Sunday May 4, 10am to 4pm (car park at Railway Inn car park to Victoria Road), Stewart Road (junction of Salters Road & Coronation Road) Sunday, May 4, 11am to 5pm, Oakland Road, Walsall, Monday, May 5 2pm to 8pm, Perry Hall Drive, Acre Rise, Fenn Rise, Eaton Rise, Monday, May 5, 9am to 8pm, Scott Road (Hurley Close to Bell Road), Monday, May 5, 10:30am to 8pm, Pershore Way, Bloxwich, Saturday, May 10, 11am to 10pm. Queens Road, Walsall, Saturday, May 10, 1pm to 6pm.
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PORTSMOUTH – May 3; Chelsea Road 12pm to 8pm junction of Victoria Grove junction of Albert Road, South Road 9pm to 10.30pm junction of Havant Road Junction of Central Road.
May 4; Aberdare Avenue, 12pm to 10pm junction of Penrhyn Avenue Dead end, Avondale Road 1pm to 7.30pm, Beverley Grove 10.30am to 6.30pm.
May 5; Grayshott Road 11am to 5pm junction of Haslemere Road and Winter Road, Knox Road 1pm to 10pm.
NORTHERN IRELAND – Belfast will mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day with a series of events at City Hall on Wednesday, May 7 and Thursday, May 8. In Lisburn on May 8, there will be a road closure on Castle Street from 8.15pm to 8.40pm to facilitate a VE Day parade. Railway Street leading to Linenhall Street will also be closed during this time.
WALES – May 5 in Barry, road closures on Tan-Y-Fron, Canon Street and Cae Glas and on May 5 in Dinas Powys Orchard Crescent will be closed.
SCOTLAND – In Kelso in the Scottish Borders, the local council said on May 10, 2025, several car parks and roads in Kelso will be temporarily closed to facilitate the VE Day celebrations.
The following roads will be closed to vehicular traffic between the hours of 12.45pm and 1.45pm – Edenside Road, Kelso, from Dryinghouse Lane to Horsemarket, and between 1.15pm and 4.30pm Horsemarket, The Square, Woodmarket and Bridge Street will be closed.
On the Orkney Islands the local council said on May 8, between 10.15am and 11.30am, Albert Street, Bridge Street, Broad Street, (from Albert Street to Palace Road), and Castle Street in the capital Kirkwall will be closed ‘when required’. Traffic signs will be erected to indicate when a road is closed.
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