Thousands of people are lining the route through central London The 25th London New Year’s parade has got under way – despite fears that some performers would be unable to attend.
Floats and musicians are marching from the Ritz Hotel in Piccadilly. The parade will pass through Piccadilly Circus, Pall Mall and Trafalgar Square.
Some 8,500 performers will “play their socks off” during the procession, organisers have promised.
It will end with a rendition of Land of Hope and Glory in Parliament Square at 1500 GMT.
The crowd is expected to exceed 500,000.
All of the marching bands have now arrived in the UK, despite concerns hundreds of participants would be stranded by snow in the United States.
The final musicians flew in on Friday morning.
On Thursday morning there was a burst water main on the Victoria Street section of the route, but Westminster Council praised Thames Water for repairing the broken pipe within 14 hours.
The parade’s floats will have a silver theme to mark the 25th year of the parade.
The parade is being broadcast live on the BBC London website.
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