Annual Service of Remembrance at IBCC

The International Bomber Command Centre holds its Annual Service of Remembrance on Sunday 8 November, starting at 10:30 am at the Memorial on Canwick Avenue. It's a fixed point in Lincoln's remembrance calendar, and it draws a crowd that's a bit different from your usual Sunday morning — hundreds of bikers usually turn out, with over 600 motorcycles at the last one.

The service itself is built around hymns performed by the IBCC Orchestra and Choir, poetry readings and a Roll of Honour for the veterans who've passed away over the last year. Once the readings are done, there's a wreath-laying. It's a quiet, steady sequence that takes its time with the names, and it's the part of the morning that brings the whole thing together.

If you've never been, the Centre is a space for recognition, remembrance, reflection and education about the Bomber Command Unit. It's more than just the Memorial on the hill; inside they've got After Me, The Flood, an exhibition they describe as one of their most thought-provoking. It brings together hundreds of photographs and film recordings captured in the immediate aftermath of the Dambusters raid on the Möhne Dam, so if you've got time to spare before or after the service, it's worth heading inside and having a look. Between the Memorial and the exhibition, there's a fair bit to take in.

Entry is free, though parking charges apply, so keep that in mind if you're driving in. The service starts at 10:30 am at the Memorial on Canwick Avenue, Lincoln, LN4 2HQ.