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VJ Day 80: We Were There

To mark the 80th anniversary of VJ Day, Rachel Burden speaks to the last veterans about their memories of the brutal war against Japan and the final months of the Second World War.

As Britain marks the 80th anniversary of VJ Day, this film gathers first-hand accounts from the last veterans – many now more than 100 years old.

Rachel Burden traces their stories, from the invasion of British Malaya to the horror of Hiroshima and Japan's surrender in August 1945. Former prisoners of war forced to work on the notorious Burma Railroad speak about their brutal treatment and the punishing conditions they endured.

Rachel talks to one woman who was a ten-year-old child prisoner in Singapore, as well as servicemen who had fought in Europe but were then deployed to India and East Asia for the final months of the Second World War.

Release date:

59 minutes

On TV

Wed 13 Aug 2025 21:00

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter Rachel Burden
Producer Simon Lister
Executive Producer Matthew Shaw

Broadcast