Southwick village turns back clock to D-Day 1944

The June 10 and 11 ‘Spirit of D- Day’ will this year feature tanks of WW2 - with both the UK manufactured Valentine infantry tank and American Sherman tank present in a major display of military vehicles.

To expand the theme, renowned expert Bruce Crompton, star of the History Channel’s ‘Combat Dealers’, former paratrooper and owner of the largest collection of 20th century military equipment in the UK, will deliver a talk on ‘Tanks that Won the War’ on Saturday June 10.

The Portsmouth Military Wives Choir Concert is to open the event at St James Church on Friday June 9. The next day The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight Spitfire flies over Southwick Village at 1350 hrs and then, in the church, writer and poet Alison Hill will read excerpts from her book ‘Sisters & Spitfires’ and poems by Pauline Gower – who established the women’s branch of the Air Transport Auxiliary in WW2 and was inspired to write stories featuring the war’s women pilots.

The second lecture of the event on Sunday June 11 by Dr Peter Caddick-Adams - analyst and military historian lecturer at the Defence Academy on war and security issues – is to be based on his critically acclaimed ‘Monty & Rommel: Parallel Lives’ book.

The entire village of Southwick will revert to the 1940s and provide a nostalgic background and experience of those important war time days, when it became the nerve-centre of 1944 Operation Overlord: the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II.

Tours of the D-Day Map Room at Southwick House, where war-time leaders planned the Normandy Landings, have again proved very popular. Additionally, returning for the second year, visitors can see models of the temporary, portable, Mulberry Harbours developed to facilitate the rapid offloading of cargo onto beaches during the invasion.

Throughout the weekend there will be a unique combination of entertainment for all age groups. As well as talks and both military and vintage vehicles, there are 1940s school lessons, re-enactors, guided walking tours, best-dressed competition, steam bus rides, vintage fair, field gun competition, war-time music, swing dancing, marching bands and more.

The event is organised by the volunteer group Southwick Revival which joins forces with Southwick Park to commemorate the anniversary of D-Day. All proceeds are divided between local projects and SSAFA (originally the Soldiers' and Sailors' Families Association), which as the UK's oldest national Armed Forces charity has worked for more than 130 years to help the Armed Forces, veterans and their families.

Advance booking for the event is highly recommended via southwickrevival.co.uk where a full event programme is available. On-line tickets: general entry £8.00 adults, £4.00 under 16 years, family £25.00, under 5 years free. Lectures, talks and school lessons require additional fees.

Parking throughout the event is free of charge.