With over 2m Londoners lining the capital’s streets to cheer on the Olympic Flame so far, the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has urged everyone across the country to keep up the incredible enthusiasm shown throughout the relay and power Team GB on to a record medal haul as we enter the final countdown to the 2012 Games.
Since the Flame began its journey across the capital four days ago an estimated 2.3m Londoners have come out on to the capital’s streets to show their support.
With the continuing fine weather hundreds of thousands more are expected to turn out over the next two days as it makes its way through Harrow, Brent, Barnet, Enfield and Haringey and around central London tomorrow before it appears at the opening ceremony at the Olympic Stadium, in Stratford, on Friday.
The flame will begin its penultimate day in Harrow, making its way through Brent before a scheduled lunchtime stop at the Hendon Campus of Middlesex University in Barnet. The flame will be carried into the university by Barnet resident Diana Gould, who at 100 is the oldest female torch bearer in the relay.
Welcoming the flame to the University will be the Mayor of London Boris Johnson, Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor Michael Driscoll and Mayor of Barnet Cllr Brian Schama.
The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson said: “The sheer enthusiasm and support shown by the people of London for the Olympic Torch Relay over the last four days has been nothing short of exhilarating. Lining the streets from Bromley to Harrow they have cheered and waved, and changed the atmosphere from pre-curtain jitters to palpable excitement as we enter the final countdown to the greatest sporting event this country has ever seen. So with just over 48 hours to go I say dig out your flags, roll out the bunting and let’s harness the incredible enthusiasm shown by the huge crowds who have cheered on the Flame and power Team GB onto a locker-busting medal haul.”
The party atmosphere is already building across the capital as hundreds of thousands of visitors arrive in the city and the eyes of the world turn to London.
On the 27 & 28 July BT London Live will open its doors at the Victoria and Hyde Park sites with all the sporting action from the Olympic Stadium and venues being shown live on giant screens, for free, through the Games. There will also be great music, entertainment and the chance to try out different sports.
On Friday morning at precisely 8.12am Martin Creed's “All the Bells’ will see bells being rung out across the country, including London, as the nation heralds the start of the Games. More aural delights can be found on the Millennium Bridge where walkers can experience 'Tales from the Bridge', a mesmerising journey through London’s history created by Martyn Ware and David Bickerstaff, daily from 27 July until 9 September, from 8am to 10pm.
Across London Jeremy Deller’s ‘Sacrilege’ and the ‘Owl and the Pussycat’, staged by the Royal Opera House on London’s canals, are both proving hugely popular.
Young musicians are getting a chance to play live at as part of Gigs: Big Busk, which sees hundreds of young singers and musicians be making London their stage in the city's biggest ever street music competition. Some 200 acts will be performing at over 35 locations around London from 21 July – 25 August, with musical styles from classical to country and beatbox to ballads. This weekend sees some of the young Londoners playing at the London Folk Festival, Balham; in Redbridge; and the Shoreditch Festival.
The giant Olympic Rings that were last seen floating on the Thames in February are also on show again, and are currently moored at Battersea Park. The coloured rings can be seen from the park side. From the other side of the river you can see the white side, actually a lightbox, which is illuminated at night and changes colour. The rings will remain at the park until the end of the week, when they will move to another part of the river.
And seven bridges have been lit up, each one differently, including specially designed pictogram figures on Waterloo Bridges The other bridges are the Golden Jubilee Walkways; Blackfriars Bridge, Millennium Bridge, Southwark Bridge and London Bridge. The lighting will come on in sequence from 9:30pm each evening until the end of the Paralympic Games.
To help Londoners and visitors navigate the extensive Mayor of London Presents programme, the 'Summer's Looking Good' brochure is available for free, from London Ambassadors, at cultural venues like art galleries and museums throughout London, or to download from www.molpresents.com.
Notes to editors
- Given the huge and enthusiastic crowds that have followed the Olympic Torch Relay on its journey around the UK – as estimated 12.7m people have cheered on the Torchbearers to date - LOCOG and Transport for London (TfL) advise that the next few days are expected to be exceptionally busy. Very large crowds are expected to line the London route and, alongside a number of road closures as the Olympic Flame visits the remaining London Boroughs until Friday 27 July, this will have an impact on traffic and transport networks in local areas.
- As a result, at certain times and in certain places, London’s roads and public transport networks are expected to be much busier than usual. LOCOG and TfL advise Londoners that, if possible, it would be best to stay local and try to view the Flame when it passes through the area nearest to home or place of work. For route information please visit www.london2012.com/torch-relay.
- On Thursday 26 and Friday 27 July in particular, roads in central London will be exceptionally busy and there will be a large number of road closures necessary along the route. On 27 Friday July, those without a ticket for the Opening Ceremony or another event in the Stratford area are advised to avoid the area from 3.00pm. TfL has already advised motorists that they should avoid driving in central London, around the Olympic Route Network and Games venues.
- For anyone travelling in London the advice is to check out the Torch Relay route and plan ahead. If travelling to an area where the Torch is passing through, the advice is to leave plenty of time for journeys and take public transport where possible. See www.GetAheadoftheGames.com for all the tools and information to plan journeys.
- The Mayor of London is backing a huge programme of free events and cultural activities to add to the excitement of 2012. Working with outstanding international artists and world-class cultural organisations this unprecedented Mayor of London Presents programme is taking place in every corner of the capital to add to and complement the London 2012 Festival. It includes Secrets: Hidden London, with artists and performers transforming hidden and lesser known locations; Showtime, the largest outdoor arts festival ever seen in the capital, with dozens of electrifying artists from the UK and abroad coming to every borough, in high streets, parks and town centres; BT London Live, bringing live action from the Games, as well as sporting activities and entertainment to Hyde Park, Victoria Park and Trafalgar Square; and Surprises bringing pop-up performances, such as Sacrilege, and once in a lifetime experiences to locations familiar and unusual, above your heads and atop landmark buildings. To be the first to know what's happening in this Summer Like No Other, sign up or follow us at www.molpresents.com / www.facebook.com/mayoroflondonpresents / www.twitter.com/molpresents
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