STRATFORDIANS could have heard a pin drop at 11am on Sunday when townspeople and ex-service personnel fell silent to honour those who gave their lives in the first and second world wars.

Shops, pubs and householders joined together to respect the two minutes silence of Remembrance Sunday, while many made the journey to the Cross of Sacrifice and the Garden of Memory to pay their own respects to Stratford's war dead.

The reverence shown by all townspeople was admired by service organisers, although Royal British Legion members, who gathered around the town on Saturday to encourage the silence, were disappointed by some people's refusal to observe the special silence.

Scores of people gathered at the town's cemetery on Saturday just before 11am to join the Aircrew Association and guests from the legion and the Royal Naval Association for a service, led by chaplain of the Stratford branch Rev Lionel Daffurn DFC.

President of the Stratford branch, Air Commodore Duncan Allison CBE, led the laying of wreaths and was followed by mayor Juliet Short and representatives of all the local military organisations.

Secretary of the Stratford branch, Ray Brandish, said he had been delighted by the amount of people who turned up at the ceremony, particularly as the weather was dreadful.

"It was excellent to see so many people there and hearing them all keep the silence. It was a moving day," he said.

The Royal British Legion led the respects on Sunday, when they led the Remembrance Day parade through the town to the Garden of Memories before a service at Holy Trinity Church.

For the first time, the procession was led by the legion, after the town council decided not to have its traditional civic parade this year. However, coun Short and other councillors did join the march, which was pronounced the best ever by organiser Tom Ganderton, of Stratford's RBL.

One of the highlights, he said, was seeing Cubs and Scouts, Brownies and Guides at the front of the procession in an attempt to get them more involved in the service and encourage them to continue the vital remembrance for years to come.

The day's success was marred, however, by the lack of quiet on Armistice Day. Mr Ganderton and colleagues took to the town centre streets to signal the silence and they were upset by many people's reaction.

"Some shops stopped and closed their doors, like Marks & Spencer and Boots, but some carried on as normal, while people carried on walking and talking, it was dreadful," he said.

Mr Ganderton said the reaction had not damaged the group's determination to make the silence more golden and said next year they would take to the streets again, but may use a signal to let everyone know it was 11am.