King to mark 80th anniversary of VJ Day with address to the nation
Camilla and Charles will attend the national service marking the 80th anniversary of VJ Day (Chris Radburn/PA)
The service, broadcast live by the BBC, will pay tribute to all those who served in the Asia-Pacific theatre, including Burma Star recipients, British Indian Army veterans, former prisoners of war, and those who fought in pivotal battles including Kohima and Imphal in India.
The event, hosted by the Royal British Legion in partnership with the Government, will see the King and his wife leave floral tributes, as will other senior figures.
A national two-minutes silence will conclude with an aerial display by the Red Arrows and the service will draw to a close with a flypast by the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, before the King and Queen attend a reception with Second World War veterans.
While Charles and Camilla are at the National Memorial Arboretum event, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh will attend a service at the Scottish National War Memorial at Edinburgh Castle, organised by the Royal British Legion Scotland.
Charles meeting a veteran after the national service of remembrance marking the 75th anniversary of VJ Day at the National Memorial Arboretum (Oli Scarff/PA)
Elsewhere, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester will join the congregation at the Far East Prisoners of War VJ Day 80th Anniversary Service at Norwich Cathedral, before attending a second commemorative service dedicated to the Children and Families of the Far East Prisoners of War in Suffolk.
Ahead of VJ Day, Sophie will meet Second World War veteran Jim Wren, who was serving on HMS Repulse when he was captured and held on the Indonesian island of Sumatra until the end of the war.
Events to commemorate the 80th anniversary of VJ Day will conclude with a reception for veterans at Windsor Castle later in the autumn.
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Times
11 minutes ago
- Times
Biddy Baxter obituary: the brains behind Blue Peter
For the best part of 26 years Biddy Baxter was the guiding force behind the children's television programme, Blue Peter, stamping her formidable authority on a series that drew audiences of 12 million with its pet animals, charity appeals and ability to come up with ingenious new uses for discarded toilet rolls. Baxter's Blue Peter was high-minded. She was a firm admirer of the BBC's first director-general, John Reith, and thought broadcasting should have a strong element of education and moral purpose. The show taught children about the Great Fire of London, Florence Nightingale and Scott of the Antarctic, while encouraging them to think of others less fortunate. The Blue Peter appeals became legendary. In one of the early ones, children were asked to send in silver paper to buy a guide dog for the blind. Seven and a half tons arrived. Another featured milk bottle tops. Baxter insisted that the children donated rubbish, not money. A bring and buy sale for refugee children in Cambodia raised £7.7 million and inspired the BBC to start the annual Children in Need appeal. Baxter was a disciplinarian and could be frightening. One of the presenters said she 'came to dread the click of high heels on the metal staircase' as Baxter descended from the gallery to the studio floor. Baxter's retort was that running a live programme twice a week, with items changing almost up to transmission, meant that she had to be tough. This extended to her superiors, against whom she fiercely defended her patch, using what she called a form of Chinese water torture to get her way. However, her reputation for sacking presenters for unacceptable behaviour owed more to tabloid embroidery than fact. Michael Sundin was reported to have lost his job because he was gay. Baxter said it was because he was unpopular. When the unmarried Janet Ellis was revealed to be having a baby she was condemned by the Mothers' Union and the press whipped up a storm. But Baxter supported Ellis and the decision to leave the programme was Ellis's own. The programme had some notable scoops. Baxter was particularly proud of an interview with Otto Frank, father of Anne Frank, in which for the first time in public he showed some of the original pages from his daughter's diary. Simon Groom was one of the first British reporters to get into Cambodia after the fall of Pol Pot and Princess Anne took part in a safari in Kenya with the Blue Peter stalwart, Valerie Singleton. There was fun as well, some of it unscripted. The best remembered episode in the show's entire history, and frequently repeated, concerned a young elephant called Lulu. She had a minder called Smithy, 'a tiny, rotund gentleman. He came with this absolutely horrendous stick with a sharp metal spike like a spear. I said I'm, sorry Mr Smithy but you just can't have that'. Without Smithy to keep her in check, however, Lulu stepped on presenter John Noakes' foot, urinated, and emptied her bowels over the studio. Unusually, for what was usually a live show, the item was recorded. Baxter decided to keep the cameras rolling: 'The defecation', she said, 'was too compelling.' In time Blue Peter was criticised for being too middle-class and comfortable but Baxter would have none of it. She retorted that nobody was compelled to watch and middle-class children alone would never have accounted for the large viewing figures. Moreover, young children, at which the programme was aimed, needed something secure in their lives. Ironically for someone who made a successful career in children's broadcasting, and seemed instinctively to understand what children wanted, Baxter had no children of her own. She insisted it was not a handicap, recalling that some of her best teachers at school had been spinsters. An only child, she was born Joan Maureen Baxter in Leicester in 1933. Her father ran a sportswear company and played rugby for Leicester, while her mother was a talented amateur pianist whose life was blighted by premature deafness. Joan found war exciting, rather than frightening, and showed early sings of tenacity when she organised a raffle for a doll she owned. She attended Wyggeston Girls' Grammar School in the town, where she was hopeless in maths but shone in English, and she also joined the Little Theatre, a venue for amateur dramatic productions. Such was her height that in one production she was cast as Britannia, complete with trident, helmet, breastplate and union flag shirt. She was not however allowed to wear her spectacles, and narrowly avoided falling off stage. Baxter went on to the all-women St Mary's College at Durham University, where she studied social sciences. Graduating in 1955 she decided to reject both of the main careers then open to educated women, secretary or teacher. She spotted an advertisement for a BBC radio studio manager but was told by the university appointments officer that nobody from Durham had ever gone to the BBC. In what she called 'a fit of pique' she applied for the job and got it, joining the corporation as a 22-year-old in October 1955. Being a studio manager turned out to be less glamorous than it sounded, consisting of chores such as balancing microphones and creating sound effects. She was determined to be a producer and got her chance three years later, working on programmes such as Listen With Mother and Junior Schools English. In 1961 she moved into television for the first time, after successfully applying for an attachment to the children's department, where she worked with the naturalist Johnny Morris and the ventriloquist Ray Allan. When the attachment ended she was about to go back to radio when she was offered the job of producing Blue Peter. Contrary to a wide popular perception, Baxter did not create Blue Peter, which had been running for four years when she took it over. It originally went out for 15 minutes once a week, with an emphasis on model trains for boys and dolls for girls. By 1962 John Hunter Blair, who had run the programme from the start, was too ill to continue and Baxter, still in her twenties, got her chance over more senior candidates. She soon made Blue Peter her own. She decided it must have a logo and commissioned the galleon design from a young artist, Tony Hart. In 1963 the Blue Peter badge was born, awarded to children who sent in letters, poems and stories. Baxter was determined to involve the viewers and make it their programme. The first special Christmas stamps, issued in 1966, were based on designs by two six-year-old winners of a Blue Peter competition. Another way of encouraging children to do things for themselves was showing how discarded toilet rolls, squeezy bottles and yoghurt pots could, with a bit of imagination and liberal use of sticky-backed plastic, be turned into something useful, such as a pen holder or desk tidy. The phrase, 'here's one I made earlier', entered the language. Realising that many children, particularly those living in tower blocks, were unable to have pets Baxter decided that Blue Peter should feature animals. One of the early ones was a puppy called Petra. The dog died a few days after one brief appearance and was replaced by a lookalike. Nobody seemed to notice and the substitution was only revealed years later. As Blue Peter expanded to 25 minutes and was broadcast twice a week, the original two presenters became three, with John Noakes joining Singleton and Christopher Trace. The eternally cheery Noakes became a star in his own right, celebrated for potentially dangerous stunts such as climbing Nelson's Column in Trafalgar Square or becoming the first civilian to do a five-mile high freefall parachute jump with the RAF. Probably Blue Peter's best presenter, Noakes left amid some acrimony in 1978 after a 12-year stint. He was allowed to keep one of the show's pets, a border collie called Shep with whom he had bonded, and intended to use him in television commercials. Baxter was dead-set against the idea. 'I think it would have been immoral' she said. 'How can you have a Blue Peter presenter on commercial television advertising dog food so children think 'I must buy this'?' The show received some 7,000 letters a week, a postbag which required the BBC take on extra help, and each got an individual reply. When Baxter was a child she wrote to Enid Blyton and was delighted to get an answer. She wrote again and was dismayed to receive the same answer. To ensure this would not happen on Blue Peter she had every letter logged. Baxter left Blue Peter in 1988. There were reports of a falling-out with the new head of children's television, though she said her departure was because her husband John Hosier had been offered a job in Hong Kong. She was presented with a gold version of the famous badge. She returned to the BBC as a freelance consultant, serving two Directors-General, Michael Checkland and John Birt. She left the corporation in 2000. Shortly before his death from cancer that year, her husband asked her to set up a charity to support aspiring musicians. In 2003 she set up the John Hosier Music Trust, a cause which she described as 'terribly rewarding. It will be much better when I die. The trust will benefit from my will.' In 2018 she said, somewhat baselessly: 'I have two great failings in life — laziness and procrastination. I'm longing to do absolutely nothing.' Joan Maureen 'Biddy' Baxter MBE, television producer, was born on May 25, 1933. She died on August 10, 2025, aged 92
Scotsman
12 minutes ago
- Scotsman
Former Blue Peter editor dies aged 92
"She was a true enthusiast and a supporter of young people." Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Biddy Baxter, the pioneering television producer who transformed Blue Peter into a national institution, has died aged 92, the BBC said. As editor of the popular children's programme between 1965 and 1988, she introduced viewer engagement segments including the national appeals and the famous Blue Peter badge. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Former presenter on the show Peter Duncan remembered her as "a true force of nature". PA He told BBC Breakfast: "For me, she was a wonderful, inspiring person, and not just for her presenters, but for what she got onto BBC television, and the kind of things she projected about young people. "She was a true enthusiast and a supporter of young people." He added: "She was truly a one-off within the BBC. I think that if something upset her, she would trail off to see the DG (director-general) and tell him what she thought, really. So we need people like that now more than ever." Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Keep up to date with Arts and Culture news from across Scotland by signing up to our free newsletter here. Born Joan Maureen Baxter in Leicester to Bryan Reginald Baxter and Dorothy Vera (nee Briers), she studied at St Mary's College , Durham University , where she first encountered recruitment flyers for the BBC. She joined the public broadcaster as a radio studio manager in 1955, and was promoted to producing Schools Junior English programmes and Listen With Mother, before making the transition to television. Baxter took over as editor of Blue Peter in 1965, several years after the programme's launch. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad PA Baxter served as editor for more than two decades, winning two Bafta awards and receiving 12 nominations. Upon her departure from the show in 1988, she was awarded the programme's highest honour, a gold Blue Peter Badge. "I didn't want to do anything other than Blue Peter," she told The Guardian in 2013. "I certainly never wanted to be an administrator or in charge of anything. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad "It was an absolute dream and I never wanted to do anything else. "It was a terrific time to be in television." She continued to act as a consultant to BBC directors-general John Birt and Sir Michael Checkland after her departure, and received the special award at the Bafta Children's Awards in 2013.
Daily Mirror
13 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Wednesday's Agnes DeMille actress's surprising career history as she 'steals the show'
Wednesday's new sidekick has gone down a storm with fans of the Netflix series. Wednesday season 2, which was filmed in Ireland, has launched on Netflix with part one introducing a new character who has already stolen the show ahead of part two's release. Agnes DeMille, played by Evie Templeton, is a Nevermore student who has an obsession with Wednesday Addams (played by Jenna Ortega) and goes to extreme lengths to get her attention. After proving herself to be useful and loyal, Wednesday accepts her into the group, much to Enid Sinclair's (Emma Myers) distaste. Evie Templeton is a 16-year-old British actress with a surprising career history as she has only ever had minor roles in films and TV shows. She made her acting debut in 2022, landing minor roles in BBC period drama Life After Life and Disney film Pinocchio. Before her screen roles, she appeared in Nativity on the UK Tour and also starred in Les Misérables on the West End. In 2023, she landed her first major role starring alongside Tuppence Middleton in the horror movie Lord of Misrule, playing Grace Holland. She also voices the character of Laura in Konami's remake of Silent Hill 2 - a role she will reprise in the latest instalment of the Silent Hill film series titled Return to Silent Hill. Despite her small list of credits, she has won over the hearts of Wednesday fans across the globe. The young star took to Instagram to share some behind-the-scenes snaps from the series, sending fans into a frenzy as they hailed her the breakout star. She penned: "Season 2 Part 1 is out now! Incredibly grateful to be a part of this wonderful show @wednesdaynetflix. Huge thanks to Tim, Al, Miles and all the amazing cast and crew. Here's some BTS for ya x" Her co-stars Hunter Doohan and Isaac Ordonez praised her, with the Tyler star responding: "That's our Agnes Demille!! Congrats Evie!" and the Pugsley star adding: "Great Job Evie!" Fans also flocked to the comments, with Mike Dowler sharing: "Absolutely epic performance! You were destined to portray Agnes in this iconic series!" Miscellaneousspectrum commented: "You did so well! Your character stole the show." Wakays4 shared: "My new favorite," with sanjay_solo_man_ commenting: "Just watched Wednesday — your acting was phenomenal! Every scene you were in was pure magic!" A fan site concluded: "Evieeee, I loved the character of Agnes, who has definitely become my favorite.
