A few hundred people kettled themselves some 200 yards away from  the War Memorial, on the Common, without the need of a single police officer.

At the Memorial there were just seven people and one dog. Traffic flow was totally unimpeded and drivers were blissfully unaware of any 2-minute silence.

The tradition of mass attendance which was being built by the centenaries  of WW1 in 2014 and 2018 has been broken. Road closures allowing mass attendance may be no more.

Chislehurst’s ceremony has been completely tamed and need never concern the police again.

Drinks all round.

So much for honouring the dead of two world wars and all the other wars since “the war to end all wars”.