VJ Day tributes to recognise Eastbourne’s ‘resilience, service and sacrifice’ during war

VJ Day tributes have been organised to recognise Eastbourne and its residents’ ‘resilience, service and sacrifice’ during the Second World War.
Eastbourne town centre/The BeaconEastbourne town centre/The Beacon
Eastbourne town centre/The Beacon

To commemorate the 75th anniversary of peace, Your Eastbourne Business Improvement District (BID) and Eastbourne Chamber of Commerce will be projecting images and stories onto The Beacon Centre from 9pm to 11pm this weekend (August 15-16).

VJ Day, short for Victory Over Japan Day, is the day the country officially surrendered and is considered the end of World War II.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Organisers say the projections will recognise those who survived the war and to say thank you for their ‘resilience, service and sacrifice’.

Stephen Holt, CEO of Eastbourne BID, said, “This tribute to those who served and sacrificed so very much during the Second World War will display a variety of images to show the resilience and emotions of Eastbourne’s residents.”

According to organisers, the visual display will include photographs, notes and memories from Eastbourne residents, thanks to Heritage Eastbourne and the East Sussex County Council Library.

Chamber of Commerce boss Christina Ewbank said, “We wanted to do something to commemorate VJ Day and recognise those who lived in Eastbourne, the most bombed town on the south coast during the Second World War.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“When the bombers flew over on their way back to Germany from London, Coventry and Southampton, they dropped their excess bombs on our town, which must have been absolutely terrifying; particularly as we had no early warning system or sirens for most of the war.

“So we have created a display of images to project onto The Beacon Centre, opposite The London and County Pub, to recognise the spirit of Eastbournians 75 years ago.”

Organisers said the display will also include work by the internationally acclaimed artist, Anthony Freeman, who will also be displaying his contemporary art inside The Beacon Centre during August.

Thanks have been extended by organisers to The Beacon Centre and Wetherspoon’s London and County pub for agreeing to hold the event, and also to Hastings BID for lending equipment.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

For more information about Anthony Freeman, visit his website www.art-contemporary.com

Read More
Man died at Eastbourne cliffs

A message from the Editor, Gary Shipton:

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news, I am asking you to please purchase a copy of our newspapers.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspapers.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

Stay safe, and best wishes.