Remembrance Events – November 2025

A message from Mr Francis Tunney, Utkinton resident:

A piece about Peace and Remembrance.

Each year on the Sunday nearest November the 11th (Armistice Day) there are commemorations – I’d hate to label them celebrations as they are about remembering the fallen as well as the ending of (sic.) the ‘War to End All Wars’.

I have been privileged, along with a small band of villagers, to lead the annual ‘Remembrance Sunday’ commemoration in our village of Utkinton, at the War Memorial erected on land that was gifted to the Parish by the Baillee Arden Family in 1918. My predecessor, Graham Stewart, led the way with commemorations of The Somme and for that we should be thankful.

Each year we begin the process by creating a simple, non-denominational service where members of the community can ‘remember’ in their own way within a broad framework by which we remember the nine men from our community who fell in WW1 and one in WW2. We place a number of wreaths, put a wooden cross for each of them and thank all of the fallen.

There have been quite a few memorable Remembrances;

Ian Priester and his family donated the ‘Silent Soldier’

We, collectively, raised funds to repair the cracks, graffiti and structure of the Cross and Plinth.

As a community we raised funds to create a permanent ‘Roll of Honour’ Board, which was hung in Utkinton Village Hall by Sir Phil and Lady Alexis Redmond, aided by Mr and Mrs Bill Holroyd.

Every year since the anniversary of ‘The Somme’, we have been delighted to have the ‘Willington Troop of Horse’ join us for part of the ‘service’.

2025 will see the unveiling of the ‘wall of poppies’ – a gargantuan task undertaken by the ladies of Utkinton WI, egged on by Gordon Bettley, where some 1,600 individual Poppies have been knit and hung as a backdrop to Utkinton War Memorial along with a waterfall of Poppies at the Village Hall.

Our thanks to all who keep the War memorial

As we prepare for this Remembrance on Sunday, November 9th we hope to continue our ‘low-key’ approach and would welcome members of the Community, young and old to join us at 11;00 and afterwards at the Village Hall for refreshments.

No ‘Pomp and Circumstance’ just a simple act of remembering.