The New Year's London Parade

Ever wondered how one of the World’s great turn of year traditions came about?
The New Year’s Day Parade – London has evolved in to one of the World’s great street spectaculars with up to 10,000 performers from across continents, hundreds of thousands of spectators on the streets – and a live television audience of tens of millions.
But way back in the 20th Century in the event’s formative years – the parade was a relatively humble affair.
The first "Lord Mayor of Westminster's Big Parade", as it was then known, took place on 1st January 1987 and even though a lot smaller than today London had never seen anything quite like it.
It provided a feast of free entertainment for all the family on what had probably become the dreariest day of the year. Featuring hundreds of dancers and musicians from home and abroad, it put real American style razzmatazz onto the streets of London. It received such an overwhelming ‘thumbs up’ from Londoners, tourists and indeed also from the authorities, that it looked like it was here to stay.

Nearly 25 years on, the New Year’s Day Parade London is the biggest event of its kind in the world, boasts a street-side audience approaching 1/2 a million, receives a huge amount of international media coverage, has a list of Patrons that represent the very highest levels of officialdom, and also enjoys the recognition and support of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Put simply, the event has grown from something that started big to something that is now colossal.

Trafalgar Square Christmas Tree

The Trafalgar Square Christmas tree has been a seasonal symbol in London since 1947. It takes pride of place in the square until January, when it is taken down for recycling. The tree is decorated in traditional Norwegian fashion, using vertical strings of energy-efficient bulbs. Carols are performed beside the tree by a wide variety of London groups each evening from December 7 to 22, 5-9pm. The tree is a gift from the Norwegians to the British and there's a remarkable story behind this traditional present-giving. During World War II, German troops besieged Norway and in 1940 the neutral country was forced to surrender to the Nazis. Its royal family, government and defence chiefs fled to London, where they established a government-in-exile. For almost five years they were given refuge here while Norwegian soldiers fought alongside the Allies. London came to represent hope and freedom for the millions in occupied Norway, who listened to British radio broadcasts which provided news and information vital to the resistance movement. That's why the people of Oslo now give London the tree. Fondly described by the woodsmen who care for it as 'the queen of the forest', it can reach up to 25m in height and is between 50 and 100 years old. It's felled in November in a special ceremony in the midst of a snowy forest, with local schoolchildren singing. Once it's been shipped across the North Sea and installed, its official illumination takes place in early December.