Local MP Alan Mak has called on veterans and their families to apply for tickets for D-Day 80th anniversary commemoration events.
This year sees the 80th anniversary of the 1944 invasion of beaches in northern France that was to prove a major turning point in the Second World War.
Events are being held on both sides of the Channel to commemorate the campaign and all those involved in the largest seaborne invasion in history.
The Royal British Legion has opened registration for Normandy veterans to attend the British National Event, hosted by the RBL in partnership with the Ministry of Defence, at the British Normandy Memorial in Ver-sur-Mer on June 6.
The British Normandy Memorial contains the names of the 22,442 servicemen and women under British command who fell on D-Day and during the Battle of Normandy in the summer of 1944.
This year’s 80th anniversary will mark the first time this memorial has been at the heart of major commemorations.
The event will be broadcast live on national TV in the UK and a public ballot is also open to attend, subject to capacity, with priority given to families of the fallen and relatives of Normandy veterans.
The ballot will close on March 25 and the RBL will contact applicants by March 28.
Veterans, families and descendants are also invited to be part of RBL commemorations at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission's Bayeux War Cemetery on June 5.
Meanwhile at home there will be an event at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire on June 6.
Alongside the service, the RBL will be welcoming eligible D-Day and Normandy veterans and their families in a dedicated VIP area.
Entry into this area must be booked in advance and is subject to availability. Registration closes on 28 March.
The Arboretum will be open to the public as normal on June 6 and visitors will be welcome to watch the D-Day 80 Service of Remembrance in the grounds.
Portsmouth will also be the focus of national commemorations on June 5, with thousands of members of the public invited to join D-Day veterans, Armed Forces personnel and VIP guests for televised ceremonies taking place on a special stage built on Southsea Common.
Havant MP Mr Mak, who attended the D-Day 75th anniversary commemorations in Portsmouth in 2019, said: " We must never forget the sacrifices made on D-Day and the selfless courage of our Normandy veterans, so I encourage them and their families to apply for places at commemoration events on both sides of the Channel.”
For more information on D-Day 80 events and how to register, go to dday80.campaign.gov.uk
Photo: Alan Mak MP attends the D-Day 75th anniversary commemorations in Portsmouth in 2019
