VE Day 80 Broadcast Events

For the 80th anniversary of VE Day, the BBC staged three major live broadcasts covering a military procession and flypast, a service of thanksgiving at Westminster Abbey, and a concert at Horse Guards Parade. I spoke with brilliant lighting designer Nigel Catmur, who led the design across all three locations.

Each setting brought its own challenges: balancing historic authenticity and visibility inside Westminster Abbey, managing shifting daylight conditions at the open-air studio in St James’s Park, and delivering a large-scale yet broadcast-friendly concert amid tight scheduling at Horse Guards Parade.

With equipment from multiple suppliers and teams, Catmur emphasised collaboration as key, drawing on both new technology and inherited techniques from legendary colleagues. The result was a series of broadcasts that blended respect for the past with contemporary technical precision to mark the occasion.

With huge thanks to Nigel for his brilliant insights.