The King and Queen bowed their heads in remembrance as they led the nation in a two-minute silence on the 80th anniversary of VJ Day.

As the RAF Red Arrows soared overhead, their Majesties and Sir Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, stood shoulder to shoulder alongside elderly veterans at the National Memorial Arboretum.

Among the 1,500 guests attending the national remembrance service were 33 veterans – aged from 96 to 105 – who served in the Far East and Pacific.

The King, wearing the Stone Field Marshal Number 4 uniform, carefully laid a wreath at the memorial, while the Queen, who is Colonel-in-Chief of The Rifles, laid a posy.

As the service began, Ronald Gumbley, a 101-year-old RAF veteran, stepped gingerly on to the podium, leaning on a stick before reading an excerpt of Laurence

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