National Alternative Remembrance Ceremony - London

This annual event happens in front of the memorial stone for conscientious objectors. We will observe two minutes' silence and white poppy wreaths will be laid on the memorial in memory of all victims of war, both civilian and military, of all nationalities.

With speakers including:

- Sir Mark Rylance - Oscar-winning actor, director, playwright, peace campaigner and PPU member.

- Rachel Taylor from Every Casualty Counts, an international charity dedicated to ensuring every life lost in armed conflict is recognised.

- Hosted by PPU member Kate Smurthwaite - feminist activist, comedian and star of the News at Kate video series.

See below for more information about the speakers.

All welcome - no need to book.

Shortly after the ceremony, the Movement for the Abolition of War will hold their annual Remembrance Lecture nearby at Hamilton House at 3pm, with Lord John Alderdice speaking on 'Ending Wars'. We encourage people to head to the lecture after the ceremony is over.

More remembrance events around the UK

For more remembrance events featuring white poppies around the UK, please visit ppu.org.uk/events in the run up to Remembrance Sunday. More events are being added all the time, so keep checking back if there's currently nothing near you.

And if you're planning a remembrance event featuring white poppies, we'd love to hear about it. Just send the event details to mail@ppu.org.uk

More about the speakers

Sir Mark Rylance is an actor, director and playwright, widely celebrated for his work on stage and screen, recipient of an Academy Award and multiple BAFTAs, Tonys and Oliviers. He has long been a prominent advocate of peace and anti-war causes, as a founding patron of Peace Direct and Stop the War Coalition, a supporter of Conscience: Taxes for Peace not War, and a member of the Peace Pledge Union. Recently he has campaigned for the statue of the peace campaigner Brian Haw, which was unveiled this year opposite the Imperial War Museum.

Rachel Taylor is the Executive Director of Every Casualty Counts, an international charity dedicated to ensuring every life lost in armed conflict is recognised. She has worked as a researcher and advocate in the human rights sector for over twenty years, focusing on issues ranging from asylum to torture to child soldiers, including at Child Soldiers International and Amnesty International. She is co-author of ‘Why 18 Matters’, a report challenging the legality of the military recruitment of minors in countries including the UK and USA.

Kate Smurthwaite is a left-wing, feminist activist, comedian and writer. Kate performs all over the UK and internationally, and stars in the News at Kate video series. She has worked with asylum seekers through Women For Refugee Women and Women Asylum Seekers Together. She appears regularly as a panellist on television shows such as Question Time, Woman's Hour and the Jeremy Vine show.