Remembrance Sunday events to honour Britain's war dead scaled back because of pandemic

Veterans during the National Service of Remembrance at The Cenotaph in London, England. Chris Jackson - WPA 

Remembrance Sunday events to honour Britain's war dead were drastically pared back this year because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The annual march by thousands of veterans through London, which was scheduled to take place on Sunday, was banned owing to the virus.

England adopted new lockdown measures on Thursday to cut spiralling infection rates, shutting pubs, bars, restaurants and non-essential shops, and restricting social mixing.

A sombre wreath-laying ceremony was due to be held at the Cenotaph war memorial in central London on Sunday, but without crowds watching.

Only members of the royal family, the government and the armed forces will attend.

The annual Festival of Remembrance concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London was recorded without an audience.

The concert features heir-to-the-throne Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, and Capt Sir Tom Moore, 100, the Second World War veteran who raised nearly £33 million ($43 million) for health charities during the UK's first lockdown.

The government said it wanted to keep crowds "to a minimum" at regional events and told organisers to "discourage the public from attending".

Church services have either been cancelled or will be broadcast online.

Remembrance events are held on the second Sunday in November, close to November 11, when the guns fell silent in the First World War.

Poppies have been Britain's symbol of remembrance since the 1914-1918 war, when the red flowers grew on the otherwise barren battlefields of northern France and Belgium.

The British Legion instead asked people to display poppies in windows or stand on doorsteps for a two-minute silence on Sunday.

Asked whether veterans could face arrest or fines for attending a memorial service, Prime Minister Boris Johnson's spokesman acknowledged that the date was of "national significance" but said lockdown "rules are clear".

Last week the ban on public services was criticised by former prime minister Theresa May.

"Surely those men and women who gave their lives for our freedom deserve better than this?" she said.

The Royal British Legion, which runs the annual Poppy Appeal, said it risks a shortfall in donations of millions during the two-week drive, its main source of revenue.

Virus fears and restrictions mean many dedicated fundraisers for the British Legion have been unable to go out with collecting tins as usual.

The charity's director general, Charles Byrne, said: "The loss of that activity could run into millions of pounds in fundraising." He urged people to donate online, where the public can also buy Covid-19 face masks featuring a poppy design.

The town of Banbury in southern England cancelled its traditional procession and service.

Instead it is projecting a light show on to buildings, featuring images of local soldiers set to music by Edward Elgar and the poem In Flanders Fields.

"This year we can't parade through the streets," a council spokesman said. "This film is our way of remembering."

In Scotland the public are for the first time banned from attending the annual service of remembrance at Edinburgh Castle.