THE Queen quoted Forces’ Sweetheart Dame Vera Lynn in a historic speech calling on the nation to endure the coronavirus crisis.

The monarch compared her Sunday speech to the first broadcast she made as a princess in 1940 at the outbreak of the Second World War.

In keeping with the wartime comparisons she referenced Ditchling resident Dame Vera’s wartime anthem “We’ll Meet Again” as she called on people to stay resilient through the crisis.

“We should take comfort that while we may have more still to endure, better days will return,” the Queen said.

“We will be with our friends again; we will be with our families again; we will meet again.”

Dame Vera, 103, told The Argus she had no idea the Queen would finish by quoting her.

“I watched The Queen’s speech last night with the rest of the country and the world and it was wonderful,” she said.

“ I didn’t know that Her Majesty was going to finish up with the words ‘We will meet again’.

“But I think those words speak to the hope we should all have during these troubling times.

“I hope everyone will feel encouraged by Her Majesty’s words, and that we can all continue to work together to get through this.”

Dame Vera previously called on Sussex residents to “weather the storm” of the coronavirus as she celebrated her 103rd birthday last month.

In her Sunday speech the Queen compared coronavirus isolation to the loneliness many faced during the Second World War.

“It reminds me of the very first broadcast I made, in 1940, helped by my sister,” she said.

“We, as children, spoke from here at Windsor to children who had been evacuated from their homes and sent away for their own safety.

“Today, once again, many will feel a painful sense of separation from their loved ones.

“But now, as then, we know, deep down, that it is the right thing to do. While we have faced challenges before, this one is different.

“This time we join with all nations across the globe in a common endeavour, using the great advances of science and our instinctive compassion to heal.”

  • The coronavirus Sussex Crisis Fund has been set up to help those affected by the pandemic. The Argus’s charity and American Express have each donated £50,000 to kick-start the appeal. Grants will usually be for up to £5,000. More information is available at www.sussexgiving. org.uk/apply. To donate visit www.totalgiving.co.uk/appeal/sussexcrisisfund