A D-DAY service of remembrance will be held by the Mayor of Fareham at the Warsash Memorial this Sunday at noon.

Mayor Marian Ellerton will also unveil a new information panel on the memorial, which marks the spot where almost 3,000 commandos embarked for the shores of Normandy.

The 60th anniversary service, which will be led by the Rev Andrew Norris who is the vicar of Hook with Warsash and chaplain to the Royal British Legion, will take place opposite the Rising Sun.

Cllr Ellerton said: "The interpretation panel will provide more information for visitors to Warsash about the important part the area played in the prep-aration for D-Day."

At the same time the Mayor of Gosport, Iris Binfield, will be paying her respects at a service at the D-Day Stone in Southsea, along with fellow councillors and dignitaries.

Fareham and Gosport played vital roles in the Normandy invasion.

Field Marshall Bernard Montgomery planned the D-Day invasion force at Southwick House, near Fareham, while thousands of troops rolled through the town en route to Stokes Bay, Beach Street and Hardway in Gosport for embarkation.

The two council heads will attend a symbolic crossing to Normandy at the Falkland Gardens and then go on to the Canadian Memorial in Stokes Bay on Saturday. After the Warsash ceremony Cllr Ellerton will travel to the Abbey United Reformed Church, The Square, Romsey for another service of remembrance with the Wessex Welsh Society.

The Shore Road car park will be closed on Sunday, June 6 but alternative parking will be available in Strawberry Field behind the sailing club.

The Warsash memorial was opened 20 years ago on the 40th anniversary.