Happy 72nd birthday NHS! Join Heart for a very special clap on Sunday afternoon
3 July 2020, 13:28 | Updated: 3 July 2020, 14:03
On Sunday 5 July, the NHS turns 72 - and the whole nation is getting together to celebrate.
For many, one of the highlights of the coronavirus lockdown was seeing all their neighbours get together to give the country’s keyworker and NHS heroes a massive applause every Thursday at 8pm.
After 10 weeks, ‘the NHS clap’ came to a natural end as things started going back to normal, but we are being encouraged to return to our doorsteps ready to applaud, cheer and bang pots and pans on Sunday at 5pm.
#ThankYouTogether takes place on the 72nd anniversary of the day that the NHS was founded, and aims to celebrate those who have been helping us through the pandemic, and recognise the vital role the NHS and its staff play in our communities.
Volunteers and other key workers who have helped to keep services local networks going during these troubling and unprecedented times are also at the forefront of this celebration.
Broadcasters, including Heart, will be pausing normal transmissions to join in - so make sure you are tuned in and ready to cheer along with us!
Heart Breakfast with Jamie and Amanda wish the NHS a Happy Birthday
Sir Simon Stevens, NHS Chief Executive said: "The NHS’s birthday this year not only offers the opportunity for us to say thank you to the nation, but for us all to come together at 5pm to pause and recognise all the work which has taken place in the last months and say a heartfelt thank you."
The day prior, on July 4, there will be a moment of remembrance and reflection for those we lost during the pandemic. To take part, people are being asked to put a light in their window or on their doorstep.
Read more:
Prince William and Kate Middleton clap for carers with the children
Across the UK, as a mark of respect and tribute to NHS staff, key workers and everyone who has played their part during the pandemic, iconic landmarks including the London Eye, Royal Albert Hall, Blackpool Tower and Wembley Arch will be illuminated in blue.
The #LightItBlue campaign will see the following buildings lit up on Saturday night. People are being asked to share photos of their local landmarks all lit up on social media using the hashtags #LightItBlue and #ThankYouTogether.
North East and Yorkshire
Bradford City Hall
Forster Square, Bradford
Bradford Teaching Hospitals buildings
Margaret McMillan Tower, Bradford
Durham County Hall
Raby Castle, Durham
Gateshead Millennium Bridge
Harrogate Convention Centre
Hull Inspire
CAMHS Unit Keighley
Airedale General Hospital
Knaresborough Castle
Newcastle Civic Centre
Sheffield Children’s Hospital
Sunderland Beacon of Light
Sunderland: Penshaw Monument; Fulwell Mill; Northern Spire Bridge; Keel Square; High Street West; Lighthouse (Cliffe Park)
Wakefield Town Hall clock tower
Whitley Bay: St Mary’s Lighthouse
York: Clifford’s Tower; historic city walls
York Hospital
North West
Bascule Bridge
Blackburn Rovers Football Stadium
Blackpool Tower heart and front
Central Pier Wheel
Blackpool Pleasure Beach Big One
The Blackpool Winter Gardens dome
Blackpool Illuminations (Promenade and Lightworks Depot)
Chorley Clock Tower
Cunard Building, Liverpool
Greystone Bridge, Knowsley
Liverpool Town Hall
Port of Liverpool building
Palm House
Sefton St
George’s Hall, Liverpool
St Luke’s Church
Steve Prescot Bridge
The new Royal site, Liverpool
The Spine (The new northern home for the Royal College of Physicians (RCP)
Midlands
Birmingham Library
NEC Birmingham
The Guildhall, Worcester
University of Nottingham Wollaton Hall
Nottingham Council
East of England
East of England Show Ground
London
10 Downing Street
Blackfriars
BT Tower
Cannon St Bridge
ExCeL London
Houses of Parliament
London Eye
London’s Living Room
National Gallery
O2 Royal Albert Hall
Southwark Bridge
St Thomas Hospital
London Tate Modern (Chimney)
Tate Britain
The National Theatre
The Shard
Tower Bridge
Waterloo Bridge
White Hart Lane – home of Tottenham Hotspur FC
Wembley Stadium
South East
BAi360 in Brighton
Clacton Hospital
South West
Albert Clock Barnstaple
Ashton Stadium (the home of Bristol City FC and the Bristol Bears)
Bristol skyline
Bristol South Plaza
Scotland
Balmoral Hotel, Edinburgh
SEC Glasgow
