New Year’s Eve fireworks in London are back in full as the world celebrates the start of 2023

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Ondon’s New Year’s Eve fireworks display was set to return on Saturday for the first time since before the pandemic – as people around the world celebrated the start of 2023.

Despite the wet weather across the UK, more than 100,000 people were expected to gather near the London Eye as the countdown to midnight approached, to watch the sold-out show.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said this year’s event would be “the best ever”, after two recent New Year’s Eve celebrations were canceled due to Covid restrictions.

The London Eye was lit up ahead of the New Year’s Eve celebrations on Saturday night

/ Reuters

A smaller event was scheduled to take place in Trafalgar Square last year on New Year’s Eve, but was canceled in late December due to a rise in cases of the Omicron variant of Covid.

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As it rained in London, crowds holding umbrellas were seen gathering on the parapet as early as 6pm, with huge queues by 9pm.

Speaking to Sky News on Saturday night, Khan said: “This is the biggest fireworks in Europe. I think it’s the best fireworks in the world – it’s the best we’ve had in London, the biggest we’ve had in London.”

He hinted that “at least three huge surprises” will be featured in the parade, adding that the fireworks will be a “reflection to the past year” including the death of the late Queen Elizabeth II.

Fireworks explode over the Chao Phraya River during the New Year celebrations, in Bangkok, Thailand,

/ Reuters

“It is really an important way to welcome in the New Year,” said Mr. Khan.

“It will be a love letter from London sent to our friends across Europe and around the world.

“It’s really important that we fully recover after the horrible two or three years we’ve had because of the pandemic.”

As Londoners waited to ring in the new year, millions in time zones ahead of the UK already celebrated the start of 2023, in what for many was the first full New Year’s Eve celebration since the outbreak of Covid.

Large crowds gathered at the Harbourfront in Sydney as it became one of the first major cities to celebrate it.

Fireworks explode over the Sydney Opera House during New Year’s Eve celebrations in Sydney

/ Reuters

Fireworks displays lit up the skies over cities including Bangkok and Manila, and were seen erupting from the world’s tallest building, Dubai’s Burj Khalifa.

Meanwhile, in central Moscow, Russians gathered on Red Square on a rather quiet New Year’s Eve without the usual fireworks and festivities, with many saying they want peace in 2023.

Citing restrictions to combat Covid-19, authorities closed off the famous cobbled square in the heart of the capital, and increased the number of police in nearby side streets.

Russian law enforcement officers stand near Red Square, closed during New Year’s Eve celebrations, in Moscow

/ Reuters

“We hope that there will be a predictable year, we hope that there will be world peace, as strange as it sounds in such a situation,” Muscovite Alexander Tsvetov said.

He added, “We hope that people will be happy, on every side of this conflict, and that there will be peace,” referring to Russia’s ten-month-old war in Ukraine.

Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, in a video posted on Twitter on Saturday, conveyed a message of hope for the new year, saying he hoped to build “pride”, “reassurance” and a sense of “fairness” among the British public.

He said, “I just want people to feel proud of being British, proud of their city, proud of the community they call home, proud of their leaders in fact.” “And this is about restoring confidence in politics and hopefully we can make progress on that.”

He went on to say that many are concerned about the economy and “want peace of mind that things are going to be OK”.

“And this is first and foremost about bringing down inflation and energy bills, which again we’re off to a good start but there’s a lot more to do,” he said.

Crowds queue in the rain to enter the Hogmanay festivities in Edinburgh

/ Andrew Milligan / PA Wire

Asked about his message to the British public by 2023, he said: “In short, I just want people to feel hopeful.

“I know it’s been hard but I’m really confident that there are better times ahead of me, and I’ve probably only had the job for a few weeks at this point, but I actually feel really good about the future. I feel positive about the change we can make.”

Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson also delivered a supportive message as he gave his forecast for next year, saying he was confident “things will get better” after a “very turbulent” 2022.

In a short video posted to social media, Johnson made no mention of his unofficial expulsion from Downing Street earlier this year – quickly followed by his successor, Liz Truss – or the cost-of-living crisis.

People gather on the Champs-Elysées during New Year’s Eve celebrations near the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.

/ Reuters

Instead he said he was “more convinced than ever” that Russian President Vladimir Putin would be defeated in Ukraine while there were signs of falling inflation around the world.

“The year 2022 is tiptoeing towards the exit after a very turbulent year in which we lost our beloved Queen and witnessed the beginning of Europe’s worst war in 80 years,” he said.

“I want to tell you why I’m looking forward to 2023 and why I’m confident things will get better.

“The post-covid, post-pandemic UK will finally start to take advantage of all our new freedoms, prolong our leadership as the best place on earth to invest, start a business, start a family or just have fun in the pub which is what I suggest.” to do on New Year’s Eve.”

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