Nadia
Youth Assembly Member
On 8 May 2025, I had the pleasure of attending the 80th VE day celebration service in Westminster Abbey, alongside Youth Assembly Manager Lucy and my mum. The Youth Assembly were invited by the UK Department of Culture, Media and Sport and the Northern Ireland Office. We flew out early Thursday morning to attend. So many important people attended the event, such as the current Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and at least six former Prime Ministers. Also in attendance were the King and Queen, the Princess and Prince of Wales and many other members of the Royal family. The event itself was spectacular, with an amazing choir singing and beautiful recitations of letters from VE day and throughout the war. It was so interesting listening to their stories and was a beautiful way to celebrate VE day. I found it to be quite emotional, with the letter read out by Nina Sosanya from Janet Thornton to her young daughters on VE day being my favourite. The event ended with the King and Queen walking back down to the nave, where veterans were seated in the front rows, and they came to meet them. Other prominent members of the Royal family met the veterans as well, with some of the Prime Ministers standing near us for a long amount of time. Overall, it was such an honour to be invited as a young person and being able to be so close to so many important people in our society.
That evening, we had the honour to attend the 80th Anniversary VE day concert Horseguards parade. It was a very energetic evening filled with so many guests from all different parts of the UK. It was so interesting to talk to all the people before the concert and learning all about their organisations and why they attended the VE day concert. I had the honour of talking to the Veterans Commissioner for Northern Ireland, David Johnstone, and I met with the Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly, Edwin Poots MLA. The overall concert was such a fun time, the music was extremely good, and the crowd was very lively. I would say our rows were the loudest, with most of us being Northern Irish! The concert itself was a wonderful tribute to those lost during the war, and those who experienced VE day. The Royal family and VIP guests were seated in a secluded spot behind us and the King made a very emotional speech during the concert. Overall, this was an amazing experience. I am incredibly happy to have had the privilege of attending. This is a massive milestone in the Youth Assembly, and I hope for an opportunity like this again.
