LONDON, May 5, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - A military parade, street parties and a balcony appearance by the royal family will on Monday start UK celebrations of 80 years since the end of World War II.

This will be the last major commemoration for which "anyone will still be alive who actually served in the Second World War," monarchy specialist Robert Hazell of University College London told AFP.

Four days of celebrations will begin with a flypast and military parade in London, symbolically including Ukrainian troops, watched by the royal family and Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

As European countries gear up to celebrate Victory in Europe (VE) Day on May 8, the war in Ukraine is a reminder "that peace is never to be taken for granted", King Charles III told the Italian parliament last month.

"Today, sadly, the echoes of those times -- which we fervently hoped had been consigned to history -- reverberate across our continent," the king said.

Alongside working royals, the 76-year-old king is due to appear at the balcony of Buckingham Palace early in the afternoon.

He has been undergoing treatment for cancer for over a year now.

They will watch the military procession featuring the armed forces, as will thousands of members of the public expected to line The Mall in central London.

On May 8, 1945, it was from the same balcony that King George VI and Queen Elizabeth -- alongside then prime minister Winston Churchill and their daughters, the princesses Elizabeth and Margaret -- greeted tens of thousands of Londoners celebrating what Churchill declared the "day of victory in Europe".

That night, the two princesses, then 19 and 14, were allowed to leave the palace and join the jubilant crowds incognito.

Some 40 years later, Elizabeth, by then queen, described the night as "one of the most memorable" of her life.

The princess, who had served during the war as a volunteer driver and mechanic, was in uniform, her cap initially pulled down to her eyes because she was "terrified of being recognised".

- Poppies, pubs and parties -

Eighty years later, Buckingham Palace will on Monday host a reception to celebrate veterans and people of the WWII generation.

Their numbers are dwindling, leaving the younger generations increasingly disconnected from the conflict that shook the continent from 1939 to 1945.

"It's important to remember some of the poor devils who didn't make it like I did," 99-year-old Royal Air Force Veteran Dennis Bishop told AFP.

Among other events, there will be a party on HMS Belfast -- one of the few surviving British warships from WWII -- which is moored on the banks of the Thames.

And people are invited to take part in hundreds of other parties, picnics, installations and commemorations that will take place across the country through the week until VE Day on Thursday.

On Tuesday, Queen Camilla will visit an art installation of around 30,000 ceramic red poppies -- symbols of remembrance for the war dead -- at the iconic Tower of London.

Celebrations will draw to a close on Thursday with a two-minute national silence, observed by the royals and at government buildings at noon (1100 GMT).

King Charles and Queen Camilla will attend a service of thanksgiving at Westminster Abbey, followed by a concert at London's Horse Guards Parade.

Pubs across the country have been allowed to stay open two hours later as part of the celebrations.

"This 80th anniversary is a moment of national unity," Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a statement.

"A time to celebrate that hard-won peace, honour the memory of those who lost their lives and remember the sacrifices made by so many to secure our freedom."

Charles III will also mark the two-year anniversary of his coronation by unveiling a new portrait of himself at the National Gallery on Tuesday.