London welcomes new year with fireworks as weather cancels events across UK | UK news

The UK has welcomed 2025 with fireworks and celebrations in London, however many occasions throughout the nation had been cancelled because of dangerous climate.

Tens of hundreds of individuals attended the annual occasion within the capital, with thousands and thousands extra tuning in on tv.

Talking forward of the spectacle, the London mayor, Sadiq Khan, stated: “I’m actually excited in regards to the London New 12 months’s Eve fireworks, the most important fireworks happening wherever throughout Europe.

“Lots of of hundreds of fireworks, nice mild show but additionally an amazing soundtrack tonight as nicely.”

The remainder of the nation confronted points with heavy rain and excessive winds all through Tuesday night and going into Wednesday.

The anticipated climate led to the cancellation of shows heralding the arrival of 2025 in locations together with Blackpool, Newcastle’s quayside, the Isle of Wight, Bangor in north Wales and Ripon in North Yorkshire, becoming a member of the already cancelled Hogmanay pageant in Edinburgh.

In Lowestoft, Suffolk, two firework shows scheduled for New 12 months’s Day had been postponed till Saturday.

The largest cancellation was Edinburgh’s Hogmanay pageant, an occasion with music, avenue events and fireworks that usually attracts about 50,000 revellers. Organisers apologised to worldwide vacationers who had travelled to town for the festivities.

Aditi Sahu, 35, and Neeraj Krishnan, 35, had travelled from London and deliberate their journey across the fireworks. Krishnan stated: “We really feel like we’re stranded. We don’t actually know what to do for brand spanking new 12 months.”

Elisa Dorris, who’s initially from Spain however now lives in Dublin, flew to Edinburgh with associates in to see the fireworks.

The 23-year-old store assistant described having to ask round for recommendations as to what she and her associates can do to have fun the brand new 12 months.

“We’re very disenchanted … however we’ll attempt to have enjoyable right here within the Christmas market,” she stated.

David Liew, a 59-year-old lawyer from Singapore who got here to Edinburgh for New 12 months throughout a three-week vacation within the UK, stated he was simply going to “stroll round”.

“We’ll see a number of lights, a number of shops. We’ll simply stroll round, take some footage and hopefully make the most effective use of our time,” he stated.

The Scottish tradition secretary, Angus Robertson, stated the choice to cancel was “undoubtedly” right. He advised Radio 4’s In the present day programme: “The organisers imagine that they took the choice fairly early given that they needed to have the ability to talk to individuals who have been travelling now.”

Nearly each a part of the UK was lined by not less than one among a number of Met Workplace climate warnings between Monday and Wednesday.

A yellow warning for snow and rain initially lined most of Scotland till midnight, which the Met Workplace stated “could deliver vital disruption within the buildup to new 12 months”, however later modified to protecting the Highlands and Moray solely with the time prolonged to 4am.

A landslide and flooding closed roads and rail traces within the Highlands.

Nonetheless, individuals in some components of the UK have had an opportunity of seeing the northern lights on New 12 months’s Eve, the Met Workplace stated.

Individuals within the east of Scotland, north-east England and Northern Eire could possibly be handled to sightings of the pure phenomenon, also called aurora borealis, as they have fun the brand new 12 months.

A spokesperson stated areas of Scotland ought to have the “greatest possibilities” at seeing the northern lights.

Met Workplace spokesperson Grahame Madge advised the PA information company: “Though the photo voltaic circumstances are set honest to see the northern lights, sadly the meteorological circumstances should not that useful.

“Scotland ought to present the most effective possibilities however with unsettled circumstances dominating will probably be onerous to get a assured view.

“Maybe the most effective areas could also be these alongside the jap coast of Scotland.”