Union Jack from 9/11 wreckage to be put on UK anniversary display

The two metre flag will form part of the centrepiece of an exhibition at the Imperial War Museum North in Manchester.

Torn and ingrained with dirt and dust, the flag was officially presented to Great Britain, on the first anniversary of 9/11, by the people of the United States and it was laid on the altar of St Paul’s Cathedral in a memorial service for victims of the attacks.

It is not known exactly where the flag came from, or if the original owner survived the attack.

A seven metre high, one tonne piece of twisted, burnt steel from the World Trade Centre will also be put on display from October, but for this weekend, for the 10th anniversary, a limited number of escorted tours will be available to go behind the scenes to view the steelwork.

The columns, thought to be from the North Tower, formed part of a window section from an external wall and the twisted metal shows the massive force and impact of the collapse of the towers.

The 9/11 attacks killed nearly 3,000 people, including 67 Britons. The vast majority of the dead were civilians, including nationals of over 70 countries.

On Sunday September 11, a major musical event spanning two continents will be held for the public to mark the actual anniversary. Imperial War Museum North will team up with Wake Forest University, North Carolina, for a Transatlantic Memorial Event featuring a performance of two specially composed orchestral pieces.

The pieces, composed by Kevin Malone, Head of Composition at the University of Manchester, incorporate voice recordings of witnesses to the 9/11 attacks.

The 12-minute compositions are focused on the United Airlines Flight 93 crash in Pennsylvania, where Kevin Malone recorded eyewitness descriptions.

The Nottingham Philharmonic Orchestra will perform one piece at Imperial War Museum North; the other will be performed in America with each shown across the world at the other venue.