A VE Day celebration will include a flaming beacon, bellringing, tasting cakes made to wartime recipes, morris dancing and souvenir ration cards.
Victory in Europe Day on May 8 will mark the end of World War Two in Europe eighty years ago.
The celebration in the evening of May 8 is in Hurst at The Castle Inn, St Nicholas Church and the nearby community orchard.
The St Nicholas Church bells will ring at 6.30pm – along with bells across the UK. Hurst Morris People and Aldbrickham Clog and Step dancers will dance at the pub at 7.45pm.
Take away fish and chips can be pre-ordered from the pub. There will be flower displays, with tea and coffee available, in the church. Hurst Bowling Club is offering everyone a go at their sport.
Many events are in the community orchard: the Liquorice Allsorts clarinet ensemble playing 1940s music from 7.30pm, Hurst Horticultural Society’s Dig for Victory stand, with 1940s tools and seed planting and The New Hurst Village Society’s offer to taste cakes made to wartime recipes.
People can join in a community picnic. The Royal British Legion is staging an exhibition. A souvenir ‘ration card’ will enable stamps to be collected from activities including visiting Hurst’s war graves and having a go at bellringing.
From 9.10pm Vicar of Hurst, the Rev Hugh Thomas will lead a thanksgiving in the orchard by the beacon which will be lit by Royal British Legion representatives. The beacon, organised by Haines Hill Estate and Hurst Parish Council, will be among 1000 across the UK.
Everyone can then join singers nationwide to sing the hymn ‘I vow to thee, my Country’.
The NHVS’s committee member Pippa Boyd said: “The community is coming together to organise this evening to celebrate a very special event. We hope people will enjoy it.”
