{"id":668860,"date":"2026-01-02T11:31:17","date_gmt":"2026-01-02T11:31:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/668860\/"},"modified":"2026-01-02T11:31:17","modified_gmt":"2026-01-02T11:31:17","slug":"i-went-to-london-new-years-eve-firework-display-the-price-of-a-burger-left-me-stunned","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/668860\/","title":{"rendered":"‘I went to London New Year’s Eve firework display – the price of a burger left me stunned’"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Londoner who braved the capital\u2019s world-famous New Year\u2019s Eve fireworks says the reality on the ground was a far cry from the glittering TV spectacle<\/p>\n

Daniel Windham<\/strong> Assistant Editor<\/p>\n

09:40, 02 Jan 2026Updated 09:43, 02 Jan 2026<\/p>\n

\"NewThe event is attended by around 100,000 people each year(Image: Greater London Authority)<\/p>\n

London\u2019s New Year\u2019s Eve fireworks are billed as one of the world\u2019s most spectacular ways to ring in the year, drawing tens of thousands of people to the Thames and millions more watching at home.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s display, staged around the London Eye<\/a> and officially branded as the Mayor of London\u2019s New Year\u2019s Eve celebrations, featured a tightly choreographed show set to music and broadcast live on the BBC<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The display \u2013 set to a soundtrack which included the likes of Raye, Sabrina Carpenter, Ed Sheeran and Coldplay and featuring voice overs from stars such as Celia Imrie, Andrew Cotter and Alison Hammond \u2013 celebrated some of the highlights of 2025.<\/p>\n

But for one attendee, the reality on the ground was a far cry from the glossy TV spectacle.<\/p>\n

In a candid review of the night, Londoner Alex Dodman said anyone wondering whether they are \u201cmissing out\u201d by not heading into the capital for the fireworks can rest easy. Posting on YouTube, he said: \u201cDon\u2019t worry, you\u2019re not,\u201d they said bluntly.<\/p>\n

They pointed out that years ago the event was free to attend, as was free travel on the Underground on New Year\u2019s Eve \u2014 a gesture that has long since disappeared.<\/p>\n

\"AlexandraAlexandra Palace fireworks on Friday, November 1 last year (Image: Leon Neal\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

This year, tickets were required to access designated viewing zones. \u201cMy ticket cost \u00a345 for the Green Zone behind the London Eye,\u201d they explained. \u201cYou\u2019re all penned in like sheep, and the last entry is 10.30pm. Once you\u2019re in, you\u2019ve got over an hour and a half to kill in a massive crowd.\u201d<\/p>\n

For anyone prone to anxiety, they described the experience as \u201cyour worst nightmare\u201d. With little to do while waiting, options were limited. \u201cThe only crumb of comfort you can get is either finding a portaloo, joining the massive queue for the only food van in here \u2014 where a burger costs 20 quid \u2014 or sitting down on the floor.\u201d<\/p>\n

Content cannot be displayed without consent<\/p>\n

The view, they said, did not justify the price. \u201cFor \u00a345 the view from this section is awful as well. Yeah, you can see the back of the London Eye, but you also get to see the back of the building site.\u201d<\/p>\n

Following the event, Sir Sadiq Khan<\/a> hailed the capital\u2019s celebrations as the \u201cgreatest in the world\u201d. Among the feats acknowledged in the display were England\u2019s Women\u2019s Rugby World Cup triumph, the Lionesses retaining the Euros and Europe\u2019s Ryder Cup win, while there was also a nod to the film Wicked: For Good.<\/p>\n

\"PeoplePeople on London’s Embankment waiting for the start of the fireworks display(Image: PA)<\/p>\n

However, Alex’s verdict of the fireworks themselves was lukewarm. \u201cThey were\u2026 yeah, fireworks. Loud and bangy,\u201d they said. Watching the replay later only reinforced their disappointment. \u201cI\u2019ve just watched it back on the BBC, and this whole thing is definitely set up for TV. We could hardly hear any of the music and got none of the good stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n

Leaving the area after midnight proved to be the final straw. \u201cGetting out after was the worst bit. You\u2019re already cold and tired, and now all of the tubes around here are absolutely rammed and it took ages to get anywhere near inside the station.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their conclusion was unequivocal: \u201cHonestly, this is no exaggeration. It was one of the most pointless nights I\u2019ve ever had. If you stayed in and watched it under a duvet, well done. You did the right thing. What a waste of time.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A Londoner who braved the capital\u2019s world-famous New Year\u2019s Eve fireworks says the reality on the ground was…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":657804,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7757],"tags":[748,393,4884,257,37999,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-668860","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-london","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-england","10":"tag-great-britain","11":"tag-london","12":"tag-new-years-eve","13":"tag-uk","14":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115825284601626722","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/668860","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=668860"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/668860\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/657804"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=668860"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=668860"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=668860"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}