To think the London NYE fireworks were an excellent FU to Farage and Tommy Ten Names?

[triumphantantelope]

The NYE fireworks always get me a bit emotional but this year I think it was up there with the 2020 covid ones. The message was beautiful and ran through the whole thing. The way they got the EU stars in, the dig at the mini roundabout painters and flag hangers.
I’ve lived in London my whole adult life and I felt the display reflected it perfectly.

Yes, and people don’t report having their phone stolen from their hands/being mugged bc they know fuck all will come of it.

And these probably one of the most common crimes in London atm - going unreported.

I thought they should have been a bit more British. The sporting references were great but why Wicked? It’s an American film based on American books, starring American actors. Also would be nice if all the songs were from the year we’re leaving instead of a random selection from over the years.
These are minor niggles though. The actual display was beautiful.

Our traveling to the millennium Dome experience in 2000 will forever put me off going to any mass event in London. It was a family event, lots of children. No one behaving aggressively. We got to one station on the Jubilee line to be met by riot police. I've never been so scared.

I wonder why the parks were closed this year with Glastonbury festival style fencing and police keeping everyone out.

Then they’re stupid. You have to have a crime number to claim on your insurance.

You definitely live in a nicer part of London than I did

I had to go around a fair bit for work and while there's probably a lot of exaggeration on social media that I don't see, a lot of people have left because they find it unsafe and unpleasant.

slightly unclear what the FU was - I have seen the display, but I haven't heard any voiceover. Is it all in there? I don't think NYE is the time to be sending political messages

Most people don’t have phone insurance.

Perhaps you and @Greenpoms weren't listening.

And you don’t actually - dd had her phone nicked out of her pocket at a festival last year and got a new one with EE no problem, didn’t report it to the police.

Yes! We said the same thing. Loved it.

I assumed it was because Cynthia Erivo is a Londoner and is being awarded an MBE in the NY honours list.

But yes, also Wicked has lots of British connections, including lots of the movie cast and it being filmed in the UK. I would say that given it was included in the roundup of events of 2025 last night, it’s probably more based on the film than the stage version, but either way, Wicked does make sense as a key piece of British history from 2024-5.

Nah, I think you’re underthinking it. There was definitely a flavour of defiant positivity and proud inclusivity about the display, and it was wonderful to see. That’s what London is all about. The mean-spirited flag-shagging xenophobes are out of step and deserve to be left behind.

Was that inclusivity of “trans women are women and are welcome here”
Was it also inclusive of those of us who know that “a woman is an adult human female and not someone who was born with a penis”??

I suspect I wouldn’t have felt included. Thus not actually an inclusive event/display.

What did it have to do with them?

Keep telling yourself that. Meanwhile if they went up you would have a different narrative.

Which would be..?

Crikey, we went a full 6 pages before we got a trans comment!

If it went up, it would be accurate and because of Khan/migrants.

Phone theft is up in London.

Yes. It’s true though 🤷‍♀️

I live in reality, not cloud cuckoo utopia land - I believe the evidence I see. Such as friends moving away from London bc they don’t feel safe. Such as my DD’s friend who was viciously attacked outside her home and had her phone stolen in broad daylight (in Mayfair) unthinkable not so long ago but a common occurrence now. And yes, it was a couple of foreign men.

Why are you so loathe to believe it?

Do you honestly think there’s less crime now? You know Khan is totally corrupt right?

I have friends who live in London who attended, and they said the event was awful. People squashed into small areas who couldn’t hear or see half of what was going on. Burgers at £20 a pop. Pick pockets everywhere. Sounded horrific! I used to live in London years ago for a period, when the event was free, and I remember loving it.

@TY78910 lol. A sticker or badge for me ha ha.

Inclusivity got a mention on page 1 I think? In recent years what that actually means is……women who know what a woman is….. are not welcome. We need to shut up and be quiet. It’s the opposite of inclusive.

Yes, there is less crime now. People feel unsafe if they experience or witness crime, I get that. But the stats are down. And I don’t feel unsafe in London.
Edit: how did she know they were foreign? D9 you mean not white?

Is this thread getting derailed over London crime stats which aren’t really relevant to the OP’s post?

I’m not aware of anything in the firework display relating to gender. Are you?

And which flag would represent those women? 🙄