Armed Forces Day will take place this month on Saturday, June 26, at 1pm at the Villa Marina in Douglas.

Last year, celebrations on Armed Forces Day itself were postponed due to the pandemic, so instead all events took place in November.

Steve Christie, who is one of the organisers of the event, says that it will have a very different format to the last one in 2019, and its setup is seeking to build on the success of the day in November.

One new theme is the range of free family entertainment which will be taking place from 1pm at the Villa gardens.

This will include a host of activities for children such as a 66ft obstacle course, a Ferris wheel, a gladiator dual, a superhero disco castle, an activity centre and a chair-o-plane carousel.

’It’s oriented around families and children, for them to come along and enjoy the day alongside servicemen’, explained Mr Christie, who himself is a 20-year veteran of the Royal Artillery.

The parade will leave Regent Street and travel along Strand Street to arrive at the Villa Marina at 3.45pm, with Lieutenant Governor Sir Richard Gozney to address the parade at 4.15pm.

Doors will open to the Villa itself at 4.15pm, followed by the performance of the Castletown Silver Band at 5pm.

All events are free, but the buffet at 6pm is ticketed and does require a RSVP to Phil Glover on 337303 or [email protected].

The evening entertainment will feature the Blue Train swing band, the Southern Belles vocal group and Lava.

Mr Christie, who served 20 years in the Royal Artillery, stressed that this was not a remembrance event, but rather a celebration of current and former servicemen.

He said: ’This year is about change, it’s about raising awareness for the public about what veterans and active servicemen continue to do in the community, such as their work with the cadets and reserves.’

Mr Christie explained that the new format of event was aiming to ’bridge the gap between the old and new generations’, with musical entertainment that ranges from swing band music to more contemporary local bands like Lava.

There are expected to be veterans in attendance who served in conflicts such as Korea, the Suez Canal Crisis, the Falklands War in 1982, Northern Ireland, the Gulf Wars and, most recently, Afghanistan.