A memorial service marking the centenary of the Battle of Somme next year, will have thousands of ordinary British citizens invited, the government revealed recently. John Whittingdale, Culture Secretary, announced a public ballot for 8,000 free tickets to the memorial service, a tribute to the fallen at the Thiepval Memorial on the Western Front. The free tickets released through a public ballot will allow guests from United Kingdom, Ireland and France to bid. The Culture Secretary made the announcement (on 1st July) exactly 99 years after the battle began.
The focus of the centenary commemoration will be the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme, in northern France. It bears the names of officers and men from UK and South Africa, 72,000 in number, who died in the 141-day battle. The battle left an estimated 1 million men killed or wounded, turning out to be one of the bloodiest battles in history. Culture Secretary John Wittingdale made the announcement while speaking at the Guard’s Memorial in Central London. He urged the public to get involved in honouring the fallen of the First World War. For those who miss out on the free ticket ballot, big screens would be put up in the towns across UK and northern France, allowing them to participate in the televised tribute.
