The sun was shining as military vehicles made their way through Weymouth.

Crowds flocked to Weymouth Pavilion to catch a glimpse of the impressive vehicles and have a chat with their owners before they took off along the Esplanade towards Castletown D-Day Centre on Portland.

Hundreds of people watched as they drove by, sharing their own support for the armed forces.

The gathering was organised by Dorset Military Vehicle Association and you can catch the vehicles as part of the grand parade tomorrow for Weymouth's Armed Forces Weekend. 

Dave Spooner was part of the procession with a military jeep.

He said: “We are part of a Dorset group and these are privately owned vehicles. We all come along to support Poppy.”

Poppy Butcher, 94, is well-known for her long-standing association with the armed forces and fundraising efforts.

For over two decades, she and her late husband organised the enormously popular military vehicles parade as part of Weymouth’s Armed Forces Celebrations.

Mr Spooner added: “This is a really nice weekend, and my favourite part has to be the parade. We love it”

He explained that this was a particularly poignant event as 2024 marks the 80th anniversary of D-Day. The day that thousands of British and American soldiers left from Weymouth and Portland, many never to return.

Andy Hart was displaying a military motorcycle as part of the day.

Andy HartAndy Hart (Image: Hollie Carr)

He said: “My hobby is old motorcycles, and I just got this old military one, so it seemed appropriate to display it.

“I also found out recently that my dad was a dispatch rider at the time of Dunkirk. 

“The Armed Forces Weekend in Weymouth is particularly significant as a lot of the troops went off to Normandy from here.”

There was a vast array of vehicles on display from tanks and jeeps to motorcycles and even bicycles.

(Image: Hollie Carr)

The event was kicked off with live music from the Decadettes which drew a large crowd and South Wales Police Band.

The DecadettesThe Decadettes (Image: Hollie Carr)

Tomorrow (Sunday, June 23), a veterans service will be held at the cenotaph on Weymouth seafront at 11am, followed by a parade with marching bands and military vehicles.

The vehicles will depart Lodmoor car park at 11.40am and will then follow the veterans and military bands as they march along Weymouth Esplanade towards the Pavilion.

Check out more images in our interactive gallery at the top of the page.