VE Day 80th and The Big Lunch street parties

The Big Lunch was a very simple idea started in 2009 by the Eden Project. The aim is to get as many people across the UK to have lunch with their neighbours, in a simple act of community, friendship and fun, once a year.

The idea grew out of national research showing that people were increasingly feeling isolated from their neighbours and that communities were not developing as they did in the past. Organisers say that while there is a significant minority of communities that are close-knit and act as a beacon for neighbourliness, many of the country's communities are, at best, anonymous.