Image: A proposed design for the Collection Hub at the Royal Air Force Museum Midlands © NMRN
Marking the 80th anniversary of VE Day, the capital will support new RAF and Royal Marines heritage projects, alongside £2m from Arts Council England for VE and VJ Day commemorations.
Two major military heritage projects have secured a combined £13.7m from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to mark the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day. The RAF Museum Midlands and the National Museum of the Royal Navy will benefit from the investment, which will support a major redevelopment at Cosford and the creation of a new Royal Marines Experience in Portsmouth.
The announcement forms part of a wider series of commemorative activities and funding awards recognising the legacy of the Second World War across the UK’s museum and heritage sector.
The £13.7m funding will support plans to transform the RAF Museum Midlands in Cosford and create a Royal Marines Experience at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. The news comes on the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day, commemorating those who served in the Second World War.
The RAF Museum Midlands is home to the world’s oldest surviving Spitfire and exhibitions exploring the Battle of Britain and Bomber Command.
Eilish McGuinness, chief executive of The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said the funded projects will “help new audiences to discover, draw inspiration from and forge connections with the stories of the RAF and Royal Marines, helping to ensure the heritage is valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future.”
Royal Air Force Museum Midlands awarded £9.2m by the Heritage Fund
The museum will use the capital for its ‘Inspiring Everyone: RAF Museum Midlands Development Programme’ project. It is working with visitors, Access and Youth Advisory Panels, community groups, staff and volunteers to transform its spaces and visitor experience.
Currently less than 1% of the The RAF Museum’s collection heritage is accessible to the public. A new Collections Hub at the Museum’s Midlands site is hoped to allow better access to its stored objects for the first time, enabling public access to artefacts of regional, national and international importance.
A new exhibition will explore the critical role of the Royal Air Force since 1980.
Visitors will discover how the RAF’s mission continues today and imagine how the service will adapt in the future as it delivers 24/7 Air, Land, Maritime, Space and Cyber defence.
The transformation also includes an expanded public realm with a new multi-use outdoor area.
Maggie Appleton, CEO of the Royal Air Force Museum, said the capital will enable it “to engage with our communities and wider partners to care for and share our collections and their fascinating stories in new, ambitious and creative ways.”
National Museum of the Royal Navy awarded £4.4m
The National Museum of the Royal Navy has had its plans to establish The Royal Marines Experience in Portsmouth backed by new capital.
The new visitors attraction, first announced last year, tells the story of the Royal Marines across the ground floor of Boathouse 6, formerly the site of the ‘Action Stations’ visitor attraction.
Visitors will be able to choose between an immersive route through the attraction or an “an object rich multi-media exploration”. Displays and their content will draw on examples past and present and will “put the Royal Marines ethos at the heart of the story.”
The Boathouse 6 project, which will cost an estimated £15m in total, will also house a new dedicated Special Exhibition Gallery and Royal Marines themed Laser Quest. The space, inside the historic former boathouse and overlooking the Scheduled Monument and Grade II* Listed Mast Pond, will measure 400m2 and will be one of the biggest temporary exhibition spaces in the South of England.
Matthew Sheldon, CEO of the National Museum of the Royal Navy, said the project will bring to life “endeavour, courage and conflict”, “through modern interpretative and digital techniques that enable us to speak to diverse and wide-ranging audiences.”
£2m Arts Council England funding for VE and VJ Day commemoration
Museums across the UK will receive £500,000 as part of a broader £2 million DCMS investment for commemorating the 80th anniversaries of VE and VJ Day. This museum-specific funding, managed by Arts Council England’s Museum Development Partners network, will support up to 20 projects designed to reflect on these significant World War II milestones. The initiative aims to enable communities to engage with their local war histories through creative activities while ensuring these stories are preserved for future generations.
The museum funding forms part of a comprehensive cultural commemoration strategy that includes £1.5 million for the “Our Freedom: Then and Now” programme across 40 arts centres and 20 libraries. These locally-led commemorations will complement national initiatives such as Tip Top Towns, the Imperial War Museum’s Letters to Loved Ones, and Our Shared Story in schools, collectively creating opportunities for communities to reflect on the significance of the Allied victories that ended World War II in Europe (May 8) and Japan (August 15).
Darren Henley, Chief Executive, Arts Council England, said the backed projects “will provide us with the opportunity to reflect and to remember, as part of the wider programme of commemorations that are planned.”
IWM launches ‘Letters to Loved Ones’
IWM North marked VE Day 80 with Letters to Loved Ones, a multimedia performance created in partnership with the National Theatre. Held in the museum’s Main Exhibition Space, the event featured actors reading from wartime letters, highlighting personal experiences of the Second World War. Poet Tony Walsh performed Mightier Than War, and the event concluded with a screening of The Next Morning, a short film by James Graham featuring Julian Glover, Siân Phillips and Joseph Mydell.
Among the stories included was that of a Sherman tank crew from ‘C’ Squadron, 13th/18th Royal Hussars, 27th Armoured Brigade, who were photographed resting and writing letters home beside their vehicle in Normandy, France, on 10 June 1944.
Historic England reveals rare wartime filmmaking photo collection
Historic England has revealed a collection of photographs showing rare behind-the-scenes shots at Pinewood Studios and the role of women in wartime photography. The collection captures the hidden story of military filmmaking during the Second World War at the famous studios in Buckinghamshire.
The collection documents the role of Dorothy ‘Knicky’ Chapman, who was part of the first intake of the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF) at the No. 2 School of Photography in Blackpool before being posted to the famous Pinewood Studios, the central hub of military filmmaking.
The collection has over 150 photographs capturing the perspective of a woman wartime photographer, featuring behind-the-scenes shots from Chapman’s posting at Pinewood Studios and previously unseen images of her WAAF training.
Heritage Minister Baroness Twycross said: “This remarkable collection reveals the vital role Pinewood Studios played during the war and shines a light on the hidden contribution of women like Knicky Chapman who broke barriers in military photography.
“As we commemorate the 80th anniversary of VE Day, this collection honours their contribution to our national story. Their legacy will continue to inspire future generations.”
Stirling Castle’s VE Day 80th Anniversary Celebration
Stirling Castle in Scotland commemorated the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day with historical events on May 3-4, 2025. The weekend featured historical reenactors throughout the castle grounds bringing 1945 to life, recreating the atmosphere of celebration that swept across Britain at the war’s end in Europe. A special 1940s-themed concert and dance transformed the castle’s Great Hall on Saturday evening, featuring the band “That Swing Sensation” performing Glen Miller classics.
Historic Environment Scotland, which manages over 300 historic properties including Stirling Castle, designed the event to give visitors an immersive experience of this significant historical milestone. The festivities included period costumes, displays of 1940s life, and opportunities for visitors to engage with performers portraying civilians and military personnel from the era, providing insight into how people across Britain celebrated this momentous occasion eighty years ago.
National Army Museum Marks VE Day 80 with Talks, Dance and Digital Series
The National Army Museum marked the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day with a programme of public events and new digital content. On 2 May, the museum hosted a talk titled The Second World War 80 Years On: Is Remembrance Still Working?, featuring historian Dr Daniel Cowling in conversation with Henry Montgomery and Angela Findlay. The discussion examined differing remembrance cultures and the legacy of the war across generations. On 10 May, visitors will attend a 1940s-themed VE Day Dance featuring live music from the South London Jazz Orchestra, cabaret performances, and vintage styling. On 15 May, Dr Kate Vigurs will launch her book Mission Europe with a talk on women recruited by the British for covert operations in occupied Europe.
Alongside its events programme, the museum has launched a new digital series exploring the British Army’s role in 1945, drawing on its collections and personal testimonies. A new instalment will be released each month throughout 2025. The museum has also contributed to Victory in 80 Objects, a collaborative publication with other military museums that presents stories of the Allied victories through objects, archives and artwork.
‘Operation Varsity: Crossing Time’ at Soldiers of Oxfordshire Museum
The Soldiers of Oxfordshire Museum in Woodstock will host an exhibition titled “Operation Varsity: Crossing Time” to mark the 80th anniversary of Operation Varsity, the largest single-day airborne operation in history. The exhibition will be the result of a collaborative project between three charities: Outside In, Soldiers of Oxfordshire Trust, and The Veterans Foundation, with additional exhibition support from Museum Development South East. The exhibition will open with a launch event on June 7 and run until July 27, 2025.
The exhibition was developed through Outside In’s ‘Step Up: Curating Exhibitions’ course, which began in February. Course participants Thomas Stimpson, Karran Collings, and James Wilkins—all artists facing barriers to the art world, including veterans and serving members of the armed forces— used the museum’s collection as inspiration. The exhibition will feature military artifacts, equipment, and original artwork including an oil portrait and clay sculpture of 100-year-old veteran Phillip Aucott, who shared his military experiences with the team.
VE Day Poppy Display at Buckler’s Hard
Buckler’s Hard in the New Forest is commemorating the 80th anniversary of VE Day on May 8th with a handmade poppy display. Team members created hundreds of knitted and crocheted poppies arranged on a cargo net as a “memorial curtain” outside the museum entrance. The display will remain until May 9th and return later for Remembrance Sunday.
The 18th century village has historical connections to World War II, having served as a motor torpedo base and contributed to building parts of the Mulberry Harbour used in the D-Day landings. Buckler’s Hard’s riverside location was the starting point for vessels and crews who participated in the war effort, some of whom never returned.
Grantham House reopens with ‘Soldiers from the Sky’ project
Grantham House reopened to the community with a VE Day celebration attended by over 500 people, highlighting the district’s military heritage in partnership with South Kesteven District Council. The National Trust property event featured restored WWII jeeps, military history exhibitions, and the “Soldiers from the Sky” project, which showcased how locally-based allied paratroopers contributed to the war effort.
The celebration included historical displays about American Pathfinder troops who flew from RAF North Witham to Normandy before D-Day, exhibits from Barkston Heath Research Group, and information about a 1944 mid-air collision that killed seven US veterans. Re-enactors, wartime music performances, and military heritage talks further illustrated the significant contributions of British, American, and Polish paratroopers who trained in the district and departed from local airfields for key WWII operations.
Iron Bridge Tollhouse reveals new display
A new display commemorating Victory in Europe Day has opened at Iron Bridge Tollhouse in Ironbridge, featuring Second World War artefacts including letters from Private Maurice James Cadman who served in France and Germany during 1944-45, toy soldiers manufactured by Greenwood & Ball in Horsehay, and historical photographs of local ‘Bomb Girls’ who worked in munitions production.
The free exhibition, installed by the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust to mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day, includes personal items from Collections Curator Kate Cadman’s family collection and showcases stories of the Gorge’s industrial past alongside experiences of local residents during wartime. Visitors can explore this historical display from 1 May 2025 – Summer 2025.
