Remembrance Day 2020: Your streaming guide

Staff Writer

Remembrance Sunday and Armistice Day will be different this year, due to the coronavirus pandemic, but there are still ways to take part in a moment of Remembrance from TV broadcasts and Zoom panels to Netflix dramas and digital theatre pieces.

Whether you’re marking a two-minute silence on 8th November or 11th November, here’s your streaming guide to Remembrance 2020:

Festival of Remembrance – 7th November (BBC One, 9.10pm)

Huw Edwards presents the Royal British Legion’s annual Festival of Remembrance, recorded in a socially distanced ceremony last month with the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall in attendance. Mica Paris, Freya Ridings, Marisha Wallace, Laura Main, Ramin Karimloo and Sophie Ellis-Bextor perform alongside the military musicians from the armed forces, while Michael Ball and Alfie Boe pay a surprise visit to some well-loved veterans at the Royal Hospital Chelsea. You can also stream it live on the Royal British Legion’s Facebook page.

Available on: BBC iPlayer

Remembrance Sunday: The Cenotaph – 8th November (BBC One, 10.15am)

David Dimbleby presents live coverage of the Remembrance Sunday commemorations from Whitehall in London, as representatives of the Royal Family, the Government and the Armed Forces lay wreaths at the Cenotaph.

Available on: BBC iPlayer

They Shall Not Grow Old – 8th November (BBC Two, 10.45pm)

Using footage restored and colourised, this soldiers’ eye view of The Great War is astonishing and moving.

Available on: BBC iPlayer

Remembrance Day: Contributions Recognised – 8th November (Royal Museums Greenwich)

In partnership with Black Poppy Rose, the National Maritime Museum is providing a much-needed insight into the vital contributions and sacrifices of Black and African soldiers in World War I and World War II. The events occur throughout the day, from a family workshop providing a historical timeline of events to a spoken word performance from Douggie John and a panel discussion.

Available on: Zoom

One Voice: Remembrance at The Old Vic – 9th November (Old Vic Theatre, 8pm)

Originally staged in November 2018 to mark 100 years since the Armistice, One Voice: Remembrance is a series of five solo performances curated by Arinzé Kene and directed by Annabel Bolton, written to shine light on the powerful, poignant and surprising stories often hidden in the shadow of conflict. The series will be available to watch online on the Old Vic’s YouTube channel from Mon 9th November at 8pm until Monday 14th December.

Monday 9th November he Lily Parr Fan Club written by Monica Dolan and performed by Melanie Kilburn.

Tuesday 10th November

The Hulk written and performed by David Ireland.

Wednesday 11th November

An Elephant Alone written by Rachel De-Lahay and performed by Inès De Clercq.

Thursday 12th November Blue Buttons written by Arinzé Kene and performed by Jade Anouka.

Friday 13th November

Come on Home written and performed by Ben Bailey Smith.

The Liberator – 11th November (Netflix UK, 8.01am)

This groundbreaking project tells the true story of the bloodiest and most dramatic march to victory of the Second World War: the battlefield odyssey of maverick U.S. Army officer Felix Sparks and his infantry unit, as they fought for over 500 days to liberate Europe. Based on the book The Liberator: One World War II Soldier’s 500-Day Odyssey by Alex Kershaw, the four-part series was created by Jeb Stuart (Die Hard, The Fugitive). It’s the first ever production in Trioscope Enhanced Hybrid Animation, a new technology combining state-of-the-art CGI with live-action performance.

Available on: Netflix UK (£9.99 a month)

Unknown Warrior 100 – 11th November (BBC One, 10.30am)

HRH The Prince of Wales attends an event marking the centenary of the burial of the Unknown Warrior and the unveiling of the Cenotaph by King George V. The Order of Service will reflect the funeral of 100 years ago and incorporate two minutes silence at 11am. Ruby Turner will perform Abide With Me, Cerys Matthews will give a reading, and there will be an address by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Available on: BBC iPlayer

Blackadder Goes Forth – On Demand

The fourth and final season of Richard Curtis and Ben Elton’s historical sitcom is its funniest and also its most poignant, as it finds Captain Edmund Blackadder (Rowan Atkinson), Private Baldrick (Tony Robinson) and Lieutenant George St Barleigh (Hugh Laurie) on the Western Front in the trenches of the First World War – occasionally dealing with General Melchett (Stephen Fry) and his assistant, Captain Darling (Tim McInnerny), and, in a profoundly moving finale, going over the top.