Soham murders: Britain falls silent for Holly and Jessica

Sport and shopping halted for a minute yesterday as millions joined an act of remembrance for the dead girls

There is a wall of flowers at St Andrew's parish church now, an estimated 10,000 bouquets stacked up against the church and lining the path that wends its way around the graveyard. Many more flowers have been placed close to where the bodies of 10-year-olds Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman were dumped.

It has been a week since their bodies were discovered – a dreadful seven days in which their families, friends and the larger community in the Cambridgeshire town has tried to come to terms with their senseless deaths.

It has been a week since Ian Huntley, the Soham Village College caretaker, was arrested for – and subsequently charged with – their murders; a week since his girlfriend, Maxine Carr, Holly and Jessica's former classroom assistant, was also arrested. She has since been charged with attempting to pervert the course of justice.

Yesterday was a day when not just Soham but Britain at large showed it was grieving for the two girls who disappeared three weeks ago.

While the queue to sign a book of condolence in Soham's parish church stretched to 100 people, around the country, at cricket and football matches, race meetings and supermarkets a minute's silence was observed for Holly and Jessica.

Gemma Rutterford had danced and twirled batons with Holly in the Fenland Majorettes. She had tied a card on to her silver twirling baton and placed it amid the flowers in the graveyard. "Dear Holly, keep on dancing alongside us at all our displays. It will never be the same without you ... I'll never let go of all the hugs you gave me," wrote Gemma.

Two other friends, Michelle Sadler and Sam Newman, both 13, wrote: "Although your life was short and sweet, the memories we have of you are great ... keep on dancing in heaven."

There were tears in St Andrew's church yesterday. Many of them were brought on by the heart-breaking messages of support the bouquets contained.

"Holly and Jessica, to two lovely girls who were sadly taken from the world. May you be safe and find peace and tranquillity. From all the crew on the Lomond Platform, BP North Sea, Aberdeen XXX."

"One question. No answer. Joe and Marilyn." Other bouquets said simply "Why?"

The parish priest Revd Tim Alban Jones said: "Each day, I'm taking boxes of cards to the families that have been sent to me at the church. On Thursday I delivered six boxes, six on Friday and four today [Saturday]. The church has become the focal point for Soham's grief."

Inside the church, more than 500 candles flickered near a picture of Holly and Jessica smiling. Among the bouquets was one from Australian Prime Minister John Howard. Messages have come from as far away as Brazil, Hong Kong and the US.

Some who came to Soham yesterday wore Manchester United shirts identical to the ones the girls were wearing when they disappeared. Others laid similar shirts at the site. One group of boys left a football – they could not afford flowers, they said and this was their way of saying goodbye.

At St Andrew's, eight-year-old Thomas Moore from Rotherhithe, south-east London said he had cried every time he saw the girls' picture on television.

"My Mum and Dad have been comforting me as best they can," Thomas said. "I hope that in the next couple of months I will be able to get over this."

More than 150,000 messages of grief have been posted on the website dedicated to the two girls, which has had two million hits.

Mr Jones also revealed yesterday that a poem to be read at Friday's memorial service for the girls had been chosen by their parents after it was sent to them in a card.

A second field of flowers – 200 yards long and up to five feet in depth – has cropped up at the scene 10 miles away, where the bodies were found last Saturday.

At Premiership football matches yesterday, footballers bowed their heads and some spectators looked close to tears as the minute's silence was observed. At Upton Park, before West Ham played Arsenal, the scoreboard read: "In loving memory of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman."

At Newmarket yesterday, nine jockeys due to take part in the John Smiths sprint championship handicap stakes, stood in a line in the parade ring at the Suffolk racecourse as the minute's silence was observed.

A spokeswoman for Sainsbury's said the decision to hold a minute's silence at 3pm – the same time as the silence at football matches yesterday – was taken by staff.

"At first we were going to observe a silence in our Cambridgeshire stores but we had such an overwhelming response from staff across the country that it was decided to extend it nationwide," Camille Bentley said.