Live pictures from Normandy sparked an outpouring of emotion on GB News as People’s Channel stars Martin Daubney and Sophie Reaper reflected on the heroics of our greatest generation.

Veterans gathered Friday on the French coastline to attend commemorations which included parachute jumps, flyovers, parades and historical reenactments.

One moment left Martin choked up as he admitted “I’m sat here in awe”.

During a rendition of ‘We’ll Meet Again’, he said: “Regular viewers know it won’t take much to get me going.

Martin Daubney was overwhelmed with emotion

“But hearing that veteran, that Goliath of a man who landed on those beaches 81 years ago singing that song.

“So many sang it about their sweethearts, praying they would make it home. To hear it from one of those old lads now is astonishing.

“I don’t want to go off these pictures as it’s beautiful.”

GB News’s North West Reporter Sophie Reaper was in Normandy watching on and she gave People’s Channel viewers an insight into the unique atmosphere.

A small group of veterans were able to attend the ceremony

“Incredible vocals from one of the veterans and it’s always an amazing moment when that song is played”, she said.

“It’s incredibly poignant. A number of Normandy veterans are present here.

“We spoke to Lord Richard Dannatt who spoke of the importance of knowing the significance of our veterans and always making special provision to make sure we recognise the efforts made by the men and women so we can enjoy the freedoms of today.”

Many attendees came to support the ever-dwindling number of surviving veterans, now in their late 90s and older, whilst remembering the thousands who perished during the largest amphibious invasion in history.

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth spoke at the American Cemetery overlooking Omaha Beach in Colleville-sur-Mer, paying tribute to the 4,414 Allied troops killed on D-Day itself.

"June the sixth is the price of freedom," Hegseth told veterans and dignitaries gathered at the cemetery. "We remember the losses, we celebrate the victories, we rededicate ourselves to the fight for liberty, security, and peace."

Addressing the surviving veterans directly, he added: "Gentlemen, thank you."

Hegseth described how the first wave of soldiers displayed "unfathomable" courage despite being "decimated" by German machine gun and mortar fire from entrenched positions along the beaches.

A series of events took place to commemorate the sacrifices of D-Day veterans

The 6 June 1944 invasion involved nearly 160,000 Allied troops landing on five beaches, with 73,000 Americans and 83,000 British and Canadian forces leading the assault against approximately 50,000 German defenders.

"The invasion would include brave troops from the U.S., Great Britain, Canada, France, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Belgium, Norway, Greece, and Holland," Hegseth noted in his speech, adding that "on the ground the French resistance covertly aided the effort."

The operation, codenamed Overlord, ultimately involved more than two million Allied personnel from a dozen countries in the battle to wrest western France from Nazi control.

The commemorative events drew particular attention to the surviving veterans, with crowds cheering those who had returned to honour their fallen comrades.

Lt. Gen. Jason T. Hinds, deputy commander of U.S. Air Forces in Europe, urged attendees to remember the sacrifice: "Let us remember those who flew and fell. Let us honor those who survived and came home to build a better world."

The Battle of Normandy that followed D-Day resulted in 73,000 Allied forces killed and 153,000 wounded, whilst Allied bombings killed approximately 20,000 French civilians between June and August 1944.

German casualties during the D-Day invasion alone are estimated between 4,000 and 9,000 killed, wounded or missing.