BBC will mark 100th anniversary of Passchendaele later this month

The BBC has commissioned a series of special programmes to be broadcast live from Belgium to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Passchendaele.

The broadcasts will span two days and will be presented by Kirsty Young from a BBC studio at The Commonwealth War Graves Commission’s Tyne Cot Cemetery, near Ypres.

The Battle of Passchendaele during the First World War took place from July to November 1917 on the Western Front. The battle was for control of the ridges south and east of Ypres in West Flanders.

Claire Popplewell, Editor of BBC Events, commented: “One hundred years on the name Passchendaele remains synonymous with the inhuman conditions and bloody ferocity of one of the First World War’s most horrific battles. On the 100th anniversary of this infamous battle, the BBC will broadcast a series of live commemoration programmes across both BBC One and BBC Two, with additional coverage on BBC Radio and BBC News, to remember all those who died in the Battle of Passchendaele.”

A special broadcast on BBC Two on Sunday 30 July will launch the commemorations, featuring the traditional Menin Gate ceremony. This will be followed by an event in the city’s Market Square, during which the façade of the Cloth Hall will be illuminated with projections and lights, featuring Dame Helen Mirren, the cast of The Wipers Times introduced by Ian Hislop, a specially written extract from War Horse narrated by Michael Morpurgo, a tri-service orchestra and the voices of the National Youth Choir of Scotland.

TRH The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will attend a ceremony in the evening, when the last post is played at the Menin Gate. They will be joined by TM The King and Queen of the Belgians.

On Monday 31 July, there will be a live broadcast on BBC One of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission’s commemorations marking the first day of the battle, taking place at Tyne Cot Cemetery, the largest British and Commonwealth war cemetery in the world.