Stadium As a Cathedral

Bands play, soldiers march, priests pray and King George V salutes a packed Wembley to celebrate Empire Day in 1925

This film shows how fervently Empire Day – now known as Commonwealth Day – was once celebrated. The new Wembley Stadium, then still called the Empire Stadium, is filled to the rafters by crowds, including George V, who watch Army bands march across the pitch followed by flag-waving soldiers before a priest leads altar boys to one end of the stadium for a thanksgiving service. Empire Day had been introduced to the UK in 1904 and was held every 24th May.