The New Year's Eve festivities in London, England, have regularly consisted of a midnight fireworks show. The focal point of the festivities are the South Bank, where the chimes of Big Ben at midnight signify the arrival of the new year, and pyrotechnics are launched from barges along the River Thames and from the London Eye observation wheel.
New Year's Eve celebrations were first held in an organised fashion in 1999 to celebrate the arrival of the year 2000, and produced by Ten Alps on behalf of the Greater London Authority. Due to disputes with the city, the New Year's fireworks shows were not held again regularly until New Year's Eve 2004, where Jack Morton Worldwide began to organise the show on behalf of the Greater London Authority.
Public New Year's Eve festivities in London were suspended in 2021 and 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, being replaced by broadcast-only events due to restrictions or uncertainties surrounding public gatherings. These presentations for New Year's Eve included a fireworks and drone show, held at different London landmarks rather than the South Bank. The event returned to the South Bank for 2023, with events firm Identity assuming production duties on behalf of the Greater London Authority.
History
2000–05
A 20-minute New Year's fireworks display was organised by the Greater London Authority for the first time to celebrate the year 2000. It was produced by Bob Geldof'sTen Alps, and estimated to have been seen in-person by three million people.[2][3] It was announced that the show would feature an effect at midnight consisting of 200 feet (61 m)-tall flames in an "advancing river of fire going upstream at 650 mph" down the Thames (representing the speed of the Earth's rotation), although the "river of fire" effect was panned by critics and spectators who believed that the result did not resemble what was suggested by the organisers.[4][3] Geldof believed that the event was successful, and hoped that it would become an annual tradition.[3] In the aftermath of the events, there were reports of overcrowding on the London Underground, and the Metropolitan Police had to pay £3 million in overtime.[2]
The GLA planned to host a second event for New Year's Eve 2001, which would also be organised by Ten Alps, and co-produced by Syd Howard—the Australian producer of Sydney New Year's Eve and fireworks during the 2000 Summer Olympics. Unlike 2000, the main fireworks display would have instead taken place earlier in the evening at 7 p.m., with a smaller display at midnight. However, in November 2000, it was announced that the event had been cancelled due to safety concerns raised by the Underground and London police.[2] Approximately 80,000 revellers gathered around Trafalgar Square to celebrate the New Year, as had been a tradition for many years.[5]
A fireworks show returned for 2003–04 event, with Jack Morton Worldwide becoming producer.[6][7] Ahead of the 2004–05 event, London Assembly member Bob Neill argued that London's New Year's Eve festivities were not as good as those of Paris or New York City—two of its competitors in bids for the 2012 Summer Olympics—stating that "If we are to be a serious contender for the Olympics we want to be able to show that London can put on a decent show." Out of respect for the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, a planned light show approaching the fireworks was cancelled and replaced by a moment of silence for victims of the tragedy.[8][9][10]
Themed around London's hosting of the 2012 Summer Olympics. In a one-off event, fireworks were fired outwards from the top of the Elizabeth Tower.[12] Fireworks were launched in the shape and colour of the Olympic flag, in a display that lasted approximately eleven minutes compared to being reduced to eight minutes in 2010.[12]
The fireworks were themed around events that occurred in the United Kingdom in 2012, including achievements by Great Britain during the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, and the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II.[14]
The theme of the show were the many "firsts" that have come from the United Kingdom and London; the event was promoted as the first "multi-sensory" fireworks display (with sponsorship from Vodafone[15]), with fruit-scented mists and edible flavoured foam sprayed throughout the performance in coordination with the visuals.[16][17][18]
The designer of the display stated that the fireworks would focus on how London could maintain its reputation as a "world-class city".[19] Controversially, a £10 charge was introduced by the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, for tickets to the official viewing areas.[20]
Mayor Boris Johnson announced a partnership with UNICEF's New Year's Resolution for Children campaign to support children affected by the Syrian civil war. Multiple London and Edinburgh landmarks were illuminated with blue lights on New Year's Eve in support of the appeal.[22][23]
The theme of the show was London's "relationship with Europe"; it opened with the phrase "London is open" spoken in multiple languages, and featured a sequence in which the London Eye was lit in the colours of the flag of Europe. The theme was also reflected in some of the featured songs, such as "Don't Leave Me Alone", "Stay", and "We Are Your Friends". The show was criticised by supporters of Brexit for containing political gestures.[30][31]
The display featured music and soundbites relating to the then-upcoming UEFA Euro 2020,[33] during which London would host seven matches, including the final.[34][35]
2020–present
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in England, the fireworks were not held as a public event for 2020–21 due to public health orders;[36][37] due to the Tier 4 restrictions in effect across the majority of England by 31 December,[37] all gatherings were prohibited and everyone was prohibited from leaving their place of residence without "reasonable excuse".[38] The fireworks were reformatted as a broadcast-only presentation featuring fireworks and drone shows at various locations across London. To discourage public viewing, the locations were not announced in advance.[39][40][37]
The same format of a "live broadcast spectacular" was used for 2021–22; Mayor Sadiq Khan cited COVID-19 "uncertainties" (including what restrictions on events and gatherings, if any, would be in effect by New Year's Eve) and the possible financial impact of cancellation as factors. Khan did announce plans for a ticketed food and entertainment at Trafalgar Square, at which the "live broadcast spectacular" would also be screened.[41] On 20 December 2021, the Trafalgar Square event was cancelled by Mayor Khan due to concerns regarding Omicron variant, and the fireworks were thus held at unannounced locations (albeit without strict restrictions on gatherings) for the second year in a row.[42][39]
On 14 October 2022, Mayor Khan announced that the New Year's Eve fireworks would return to being a public event on the South Bank for 2022–23, promoting plans for them to be "the best ever".[43] Drone shows were also incorporated into the public event, this time over Horse Guards Parade.[44][45] The London-based event agency Identity took over production of the event on behalf of the Greater London Authority.[46]
The fireworks are broadcast by other networks as well, including ITV (which presents them during the special bulletin ITV News Including New Year Bongs) and Sky News.[55]
^"New Year Live". New Year Live. London. 31 December 2008 – 31 December 2012. BBC. BBC One. Archived from the original on 7 January 2013. Retrieved 4 February 2014.
^"New Year Live". New Year Live. London. 31 December 2013 – 31 December 2014. BBC. BBC One. Archived from the original on 5 January 2018. Retrieved 4 February 2014.
