Bikers pay tribute to war dead

Thousands of leather-clad bikers have made a pilgrimage to a war memorial to show their support for the Armed Forces.

The riders arrived in their droves throughout Saturday morning for a service at the National Memorial Arboretum in Alrewas, Staffordshire.

Called Ride to the Wall, the event included many riders who had messages emblazoned on the back of their leather jackets such as "lest we forget".

The annual mass motorcycle tribute, which is now in its fifth year, saw riders attending from all corners of the UK and parts of Europe, either as individuals or in groups and chapters from particular organisations.

They gathered at one of the eight designated start points around the country to ride to the Arboretum, including Drayton Manor in Staffordshire.

The riders paid tribute to the war dead in a service of remembrance at the walls of the Armed Forces Memorial, which is engraved with the names of more than 16,000 servicemen and women killed on duty or by terrorist action since the end of the Second World War.