Falklands 25th Anniversary Commemorative Service

Holyrood Church in 1980, prior to restoration

Dashing from the Common (see previous post), I headed up to Holyrood Church for the Falklands 25th Anniversary Commemorative service. This was part of a programme of low key events in Southampton to mark the conflict. (For more events, click HERE.)

Held in the open air, (the church was bombed out during the war and restored with lottery funding very successfully albeit expensively), the Church was full with veterans, civic dignatories, cadets and serving military personell. The Rev Ian Johnson a.k.a. the red Rector was on his best behavior (his pacisifist rant having been published on Friday in the Echo) although he fluffed the reading badly. The Bishop of Winchester gave a thoughtful address and a serviving Warrent Officer from the visiting HMS York read Chapter 5 v.1-16 from the Gospel of Matthew. The parade then marched through the Bargate to the Civic Centre. Veterans were then invited for tea with the mayor; it was good to see so many guys from the Southampton Branch of the British Legion there.