Away from all the protests, hate and acrimony, I had a poignant and peaceful day paying my respects, along with many constituents, to all those who had given their lives for our freedom. As always, I was able to attend two of the commemorations out of the three major conurbations in my Seat. I alternate between Weymouth and Portland as their Services are at the same time, while Swanage's is at 1400. I arrived at the Heights Hotel at 1015 and was soon chatting to many attendees, including the island's Mayor, Cllr Carralyn Parkes, David Sidwick, our P&CC, and the Bishop of Salisbury. At 1045, we walked to the Memorial, which had a breathtaking view to the West. The Service was led by the island's Rector, the Reverend Tim Gomm. There were many wreath layers and islanders for this special event. Rather touchingly, there were three accounts on those who had served in war, read by Vivien Kimber, Cdt L/Cpl Megan Grundonner and Cdt Amira White-Balsdon. I stayed on at the end for as long as I could to chat to attendees, but had to leave to get to the Service in Swanage, going via the Memorial in Weymouth, where I quietly laid a wreath. As I left Weymouth, it began to rain, which then followed me across to Swanage. Having parked, I ran to the Conservative Club, met one of the new team there and then accompanied him down the road to the starting point by the theatre. The march to the church took about 10 minutes and it rained all the way. The Mayor and I were ushered into the Vestry where we were towelled down by a kindly member of the Rector's team. The Service here, like on Portland, was spot on, with good hymns and Sermon. The choir sang their hearts out and we emerged about 45 minutes later, relieved that the rain had stopped. We then all marched to the Cenotaph on the seafront and many laid wreaths. Two D Day veterans attended, wrapped up against the cold. During my 13 years as MP, I have always loved ending this day on the seafront. It just catches the mood of the day for me, anyway.