FORMER Wiltshire county highways officer Stanley Jones was 10 years old when Britain celebrated VE Day in 1945 – the end of the Second World War in Europe.

Now aged 85, he lives in Horse Road, Hilperton, with his wife Monica. Of VE Day 1945, he says: “We were getting more and more and more excited. The war in Europe was nearly over.

“The victory celebrations in Trowbridge had already been planned. Posters were going up in shop windows amid red white and blue rosettes. Only the date of VE Day had been left out.

“As we left school on May 7 the teachers told us that if there was an announcement during the evening that Germany had surrendered there would be a holiday for the next two days.

“The announcement came and no way were we going to school, but some children and one or two teachers obviously did not listen to the wireless.

“As we went into the town where bunting was already being put up we passed the school and there on the steps – with the doors locked was a small queue of children and my teacher.

“We quite happily passed by on the other side of the road. Bunting was appearing in the windows of many terraced houses, and we had a good tour round. It was great.

“My next memory is in the afternoon. A large crowd had gathered outside the Town Hall, loudspeakers had been erected and at 3pm Winston Churchill made a broadcast to the nation, and in his wonderful and dramatic way told us that war was over. Hitler had been defeated.

“Churchill also reminded us that there was still much to do – Japan was still at war with us - but this was the great day.

”A procession had been arranged for the late evening, led of course by the Trowbridge British Legion Boys Band. Behind the band came Sammy Paradise and his horse and cart - and there, strung up in GuyFawkes fashion, were effigies of Hitler and Mussolini en route to a large bonfire that had been built in the lower part of the Park.

“Back home coloured lights had been placed in the trees at the top of Union Street.There all the folk, joined by us children, danced the night away.

“Street parties had been hastily arranged. Ours was a few days later in the schoolroom of Zion Chapel, which had been used as a storage depot.

“We marched down from the top of the road with mugs and plates rather like the soldiers had done a few years earlier.