IT was arguably the most important headline ever to appear on the front page of the Bolton Evening News.

Four words which meant so much to every man, woman and child in the town - “War in Europe Over”.

Dated May 7, 1945 the edition was snapped up - paper sellers in the streets were mobbed as residents wanted to confirm that six years of conflict was finally at an end

Rumours of a German surrender had been circulating for several weeks and loose arrangements for VE Day celebrations had been made.

But now it was official.

“The war in Europe is ended,” declared the story in the Evening News. “The Allies today officially announced that Germany had surrendered unconditionally.

“The surrender took place at 2.14am (French time) at the little red school house which is General Eisenhower’s headquarters.

“Col-General Gustav Jodl, the new German Army Chief of Staff signed for Germany.”

A second story on that historic front page was headlined “World Waits VE-Day Announcement”.

It was expected that the Prime Minister Winston Churchill would soon be addressing the nation and the celebrations could officially begin.

One of the first people to bring the news to Bolton that the war was over was a 15-year-old boy.

Don Carr was working at Tillotsons, the proprietors of The Bolton Evening News, when official confirmation of victory came through on the old ‘ticker-tape’ machine.

Don, who later went on to become a councillor, was quoted saying: “All the bunting was up throughout the town and we were waiting for the news to come through that the war was over.

“When the ticker-tape message came through, Jim Ashworth, the BEN’s Art Editor, asked me to go out into the street and get a group of people together for a photo.

“I did and he told me: ‘Well, get on it – this is history, this’.”

At 3pm on May 7, Winston Churchill made his broadcast to the nation.

In his speech, Churchill, aware that the war was still being fought in the Far East, and Europe and much of Britain was in ruins, added a note of caution: “We may allow ourselves a brief period of rejoicing; but let us not forget for a moment the toil and efforts that lie ahead.”

The government declared May 8 and 9 as public holidays.

The British public, willing this day to come and, having at one point, stood alone to face the Nazi threat during the dark days of the Blitz and Dunkirk, didn’t need a second invitation to celebrate.

In Bolton families had been making bunting for several days ahead of the announcement and local street committees had been set up to plan parties.

Communities pooled together their rations to ensure that a proper spread could be laid on on trestle tables which seemed to appear from everywhere.

On May 8, from a window at the Ministry of Health in London, Churchill addressed the thousands of people gathered below, giving an impromptu speech.

“This is your hour, said Churchill. “This is not victory of a party or of any class. It’s a victory of the great British nation. We were the first to draw the sword against tyranny. There we stood, alone.

“The lights went out and the bombs came down. But every man, woman and child in the country had no thought of quitting the struggle.

“I say that in the long years to come not only will the people of this island but of the world, wherever the bird of freedom chirps in human hearts, look back to what we’ve done and they will say do not despair, do not yield to violence and tyranny, march straightforward and die if need be-unconquered.”

“I rejoice we can all take a night off today and another day tomorrow.”

And rejoice they did!