London Parade - A Tribute to 40 Years

London, the iconic capital city of Great Britain, a place filled with history, world famous landmarks, and home to the London Parade, an annual celebration on New Year's Day where performers from far and wide join local communities to kick start the New Year in style.

With 2026 heralding the 40th anniversary there's plenty to get excited about.

Clap your hands and stomp your feet We'll keep on moving to this brand new beat We can teach you how I'm Bob Bone, founder of The Parade, and in this program I'll be taking you behind the scenes, sharing the story of the event's origins, explaining how and why it's changed since those early days, and looking at some of the challenges we faced over the years.

Highlighting a few of my favorite moments from 40 great years.

Every year, thousands of young people, just like the one studying here at Fleming Island High School in Florida, travel across the Atlantic to take part in a once in a lifetime opportunity, the chance to parade through the streets of the City of Westminster in the heart of London, passing by some of the most popular visitor best known sites such as Piccadilly Circus, Trafalgar Square, Big Ben and also buildings and monuments of national importance like the Cenotaph, number 10 Downing Street, and the Houses of Parliament.

When I think back to the very first parade in 1987, I think of how London was on New Year's Day before the coming of the parade.

The shops didn't open or if they did, they only did so for half a day.

Theaters were dark, restaurants were closed, and even most hotels shut their doors after Christmas and didn't reopen until after New Year.

There was simply no one around and nothing to do.

We wanted to change all that, and I really think we have succeeded to an extent beyond my wildest dreams.

January the 1st in London is now perhaps the most vibrant and busiest day of the year, and that's largely thanks to the London Parade.

From that first parade that saw about 1500 largely British and American performers march through the streets as part of a 24 act parade, reportedly watched by anything between 100,000 and 150,000 people.

We now justifiably call ourselves the greatest event in the greatest city in the world, with around 8,000 performers from 25 different countries around the world, watched by half a million people on the streets of London, and millions, hundreds of millions of people on TV around the world.

When my wife Geri and I started this thing with the help and support of our brilliant patron, Roger Bramble, who was Lord Mayor of Westminster at the time, we had a very young family, and inevitably our daughter Lizzie and son Joe had to learn to live with the demands of the parade, you know.

And on the basis that if you can't beat it, you might as well join it.

Both Lizzie and Joe have been thoroughly involved in the development and the growth of London Parade, to the point where Joe has now taken up the reins as event director and is now leading the event to even greater heights.

So the parade has always been a part of my life, probably my earliest memory and fondest memory of the parade when I was around 4 or 5.

And it wasn't bad weather or good weather.

It was the giant dragon.

And in my head it was ginormous.

It was like 60 or 70 foot.

My practical head now I'm an adult, tells me it was probably only about 30 foot.

But it was like nothing you've ever seen before.

It was huge.

It was colorful.

It breathed smoke, fire came out the back, but it was just incredible.

Like it was spectacular.

Can you imagine as a four or five year old, seeing that sort of driving down Piccadilly, Regent Street.

It just sort of blows your mind.

So another of my favorites would have to be Darcy Oake.

I think it was back in 2016 or '17.

We had Darcy Oake, who's an amazing illusionist.

He was, firstly a lovely guy, which helped things.

And had an amazing team, which wouldn't have been possible to do what we did without that.

But he decided to do something that had never been done live, which was hang 40 foot in the air and try and escape from, for lack of -- a water box that his head was entrapped in.

He was padlocked, suspended from a crane.

Now, being a bit naive at this time, I was chatting to Darcy.

I was like, oh, this must be all very straightforward.

It's all a bit of a trick, isn't it?

You know, it's all.

No, it really is escapism.

It's illusionism.

So what I didn't realize was quite how scary this potential act was.

So I'm chatting to sort of his helper, for lack of a better word, on the day.

And of course, being London, it started to drizzle.

It wasn't conducive weather for this illusion.

And I could see he was getting kind of nervous and I'm thinking, oh, it's just this is great looking at my watch, great suspense.

You know, the crowd are all loving this.

They're going, wow, wow.

You know, we've got sort of slow music in the background.

He sort of nudging me going, we need to bring him dawn soon.

We need to bring him down soon.

And I'm going, yeah, of course he's fine, he's fine.

I'm looking at the clock.

He's sort of ten, 15 seconds over and he gets out.

He does it.

It's brilliant.

The crane comes down at a much faster speed than it did in rehearsals.

He comes out, you know, consummate showman, hands up, you know, towel over his head.

I'm thinking, okay, brilliant.

That was great.

And he sort of, I say, "Oh, Darcy, well done.

That was really good," you know, and his sort of helpers over there going, "Darcy, are you okay?

Are you okay?"

And Darcy was like, "That didn't go to plan.

That really didn't go to plan."

He's like, "we got out of it."

But he said, "It was so wet my hands were slipping on the padlocks, I couldn't, I was really struggling to breathe and I was thinking, oh my goodness, that probably could have been the end of the parade.

But it looked spectacular.

And credit to Darcy and the team, who sort of just carried on as though nothing had happened.

This was just another day at the office and I watched it back later on ITV, I think it was, and it looked amazing.

The suspense was absolutely brilliant, and I remember one of the Lord mayors who I won't name said to me afterwards, well, if that had gone wrong, you'd have lost the job because the parade would have been over.

And I remember thinking, maybe I pushed it a little bit too close to the wire on that one, but it was it was incredible.

The parade is -- it's a properly family event.

You know, it's Mum and Dad, or Bob and Geri as people know them.

Uh, it's myself.

It's of course, Lizzie.

Lizzie Bone, my sister, who is amazing.

You know, we were heavily involved from a young age, you know, and to be honest, probably couldn't have seen myself doing anything else.

I came on, let's say, full time when I was probably 18 or 19, and started from the bottom, which I think is very important.

Um, started driving the trucks, doing the logistics and all the side of it that people don't see with events.

And that was a great learning curve for me and showed just how much goes into putting on an event of this scale.

So yeah, worked my way up.

Kind of did it all really enjoyed the more practical elements, which meant for me, it was always going to be moving towards the event side of things.

And so yeah, I'm very fortunate now that I am, I think the title sounds very grand, but executive director of the London Parade.

Honestly, my day-to-day they look, well, each day looks different.

To be honest, it's a lot of admin.

You know, I'm dealing with 8,000 performers.

There's a lot of health and safety that goes with that.

And of course, I deal with the, you know, the boroughs very closely.

I deal with the Greater London Authority, the GLA, all the mayors of London, um, you know, the councils, the relevant councils.

Westminster, of course, where the parade is hosted.

So, you know, I have that side of it.

But then, you know, you've also got logistics.

You know, we have to ship a lot of instruments and equipment.

I think, you know, people are always surprised to find out that we have 15 to 20,000 square foot of warehousing, which, you know, has weights in for the signage, um, barriers in, you know, has kind of cool stuff as well, like some of our balloons and costumes.

And, you know, I spend my time checking on that, making sure the signage is up to date.

You know, the grandstands are clean.

You know, it's not the most glamorous at times, but I personally love that side of it, so it's different every day.

I wouldn't change it for the world.

I love it, I love what I do.

The parade has enjoyed a number of different routes over the years, but they're always iconic and always exciting for the performers and spectators alike.

But for the last 20 years, we've been parading on the route that will be the scene of our 40th anniversary parade on the 1st of January, 2026.

I find it hard to believe that there can be a better parade route in the world.

We begin in Piccadilly, just alongside the famous Ritz Hotel, where our participants can look ahead to the bright lights of Piccadilly Circus and walk past wonderful buildings like the Royal Academy of Arts and London's oldest department store, Fortnum & Mason.

Whilst the parade route takes us past so many iconic London landmarks and famous settings, you don't have to look too far to find connections which reflect the special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom.

For example, just around the corner from our starting point of the parade, tucked away on St.

James Street, you'll find a plaque commemorating the site of the embassy of the Republic of Texas, which was located here between 1836 and 1845, during a time when Texas had declared its independence from Mexico but hadn't yet joined the United States of America.

And Piccadilly itself was for a short time in the late 19th century, once the location of the US embassy.

Further along the route and standing proud in front of the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square, is a bronze statue of George Washington, a gift from the Commonwealth of Virginia, and a replica of the famous marble statue which has stood in the Capitol Rotunda in Richmond, Virginia since 1796.

The parade passes by the home of British Prime Ministers, which is located in Downing Street along Whitehall.

But did you know there's also a Downing Street in both Greenwich Village, New York and Brooklyn?

They're all named after Sir George Downing, an English diplomat and a financial administrator who in 1642 became one of the first graduates of Harvard University, and later went on to be responsible for arranging the acquisition of New York City, at that time called New Amsterdam, from the Dutch.

Another US president can be found once our performers sweep around into Parliament Square after their finale performance.

Abraham Lincoln, watching on from the northwest side of the gardens with a magnificent view towards Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, sharing the space with Britain's wartime Prime Minister, Sir Winston Churchill.

In Parliament Square, there are also tributes to Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, and the British suffragette and social campaigner Millicent Fawcett.

Of course, putting together an event like this one is not without its challenges.

The first, and the one we really can't control is the great British weather, something we Brits talk about in just about every daily conversation.

We've seen it all on January the 1st, across the decades -- sun, rain, wind, and even once, snow.

But none of that matters because on the day, everyone involved carries on regardless and delivers the very best performance they can.

I suppose the biggest challenge of all came almost immediately following the 2020 parade, when we were, as every year, already deep into planning for the next parade.

No one could have predicted what would happen next.

A global pandemic and worldwide restrictions on travel due to the outbreak of COVID-19, making it impossible for our usual array of international participants to come to London for New Year's Day 2021.

But the show must go on.

And so we worked hard to create an entertaining spectacle of musicians, dancers and performances which were filmed under strict controls in a TV studio.

Luckily, we were still able to make sure we included those who had been planning to come to London that year as they sent over videos of their performances, which we could share with our TV audience.

We were certainly glad, though, when the following year we could get back onto the streets of London, albeit in a slightly different fashion, with the whole event confined to Waterloo Place.

[ Vocalizing ] You'll know my name before I go [ Vocalizing ] Make some noise, London.

I said make some noise.

Thankfully though, by 2023 we were back to our usual route and happily welcomed those from around the world to celebrate the New Year the London way.

Yeah, over the years we've had some incredible performers from all over the world, not just the American marching bands and cheerleaders.

We've had amazing groups from Panama, Costa Rica.

This year we've got Sabine's Art of Dance from Germany.

We've had, of course, the Italian majorettes, which they're famous for.

And of course, we have amazing groups from Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, Mexico as well, I believe.

I mean, it really is all over the world.

It's a global thing.

And yeah, it's very, very special.

So of course, one of the biggest crowd pleasers every year is always Varsity, the cheerleaders, and they've been with the parade since day one.

They have been there from the very first parade.

And, of course, they are here for the 40th anniversary.

I love Varsity.

I've been out to their campus in America.

It is quite something.

Weird thing I learned was that the head designer from Nike was actually recruited to design the Varsity shoes or the cheerleading shoes, which gives you a sort of an idea of just how big an organization Varsity is.

But they're amazing, and the crowds love them.

One thing that never ceases to amaze me is the level of dedication and effort that goes into getting groups ready for taking part in the parade.

Yesterday I visited Seminole High School in Florida and Harmony High School just outside Orlando as well, and saw exactly how diligently all the students are preparing for the parade and how excited they are to be a part of the event.

It's been fantastic to watch.

I'm here at Fleming Island High School in Florida today.

Because ahead of each parade, I visit the various schools to present them with their official invitation.

And that's always a very exciting event for the students and their teachers and for us.

And I've been talking to Will Vizoso, the director of Bands at Harmony, about what it means to be coming to London.

Oh, memories for a lifetime, without a doubt.

As I said before, I've had trips like this before, and I will, like, this is 35 years ago, but I've had trips like this that I still remember to this day, and I hope I can give that to them, a gift to them that they'll they'll have memories that last them a lifetime.

I haven't decided yet.

I'm actually going to do some research and see what some of the other bands are playing and then kind of dictate like what stylistically would be appropriate.

Making sure that we have something that would captivate the audience, as well as be fun for the students to play, but also be something that would do service to the parade.

This is going to be their first big trip ever in the school's history.

The school has been open for 20 years and the band has never really done a trip, which I was shocked about, but yeah.

We've come to build a big sense of camaraderie here in the band and my biggest thing is that I want to make sure that they enjoy their time here.

And it's been evident with some of their actions and what we do.

They can notice that there's a noticeable difference from before I was here and to where I'm at now.

So.

Well, they love you.

Yes.

Yeah, yeah.

It's great.

It's great.

That's another reason why again, I like being here is because again I get the students are wonderful students.

Of course, as well as our international performers, London itself is well represented, thanks to the contributions of the London boroughs, the local councils, which make up the wider area of Greater London.

Each borough taking part goes to great lengths to include their whole community, and over the years we've seen Londoners of all ages taking part in the parade.

Obviously it's hugely diverse, you know, 27 countries represented and I think, could be wrong, but I think we are the only event that is that diverse.

And we just have the best of everything.

It doesn't matter if you are the best at plate spinning or if you're the best at showing horses or you know, you're the best samba dancers, we want it all.

We want that mix.

We want the weird, we want the wacky, and we want the wonderful.

And that mix is, to be honest, there's nothing like it.

You know, I remember Chesney Hawkes, who did it a few years back, in our assembly area, and he was having a cup of tea before the parade started with the Pearly Kings and Queens.

And then behind him, there are some giant dinosaurs.

And I'm looking at this and I'm going, "Is this real?

Is this -- Is this actually happening?"

And I remember he stopped me at the end, and he said, "That was the weirdest, but the best experience I've ever had."

And I think that sums up the parade.

I think that sums up everyone in the parade.

And just what the parade is.

Although the parade is the focal part of the visit for our American groups, they also get to enjoy a full historical and cultural experience with visits to places like the Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, Windsor Castle, and Hampton Court Palace.

There's also the chance to take in a West End show, or visit some of our world famous museums and galleries.

And that's something which really excites the young people, many of whom have never traveled outside of America.

Yeah, So the first thing, as soon as I stepped off the plane, really, it was, it just everything felt so much cooler.

I think the fact that I was doing it with my peers and friends.

Oh my goodness, that was -- it was awesome.

Yeah.

No, it was it was cool.

It was really cool.

It was amazing seeing all like the atmospheres and the different people and seeing all the cultures.

I loved seeing all of it.

It was so cool.

It was amazing.

I mean, you're just in a completely different environment than what you're normally used to, seeing completely different kind of people and different kind of food.

And just it's a completely unique experiment -- experience that it just, it's amazing.

We had a wonderful moment last year when one of our visiting band directors, Gary Schallert, from Western Kentucky University, reminded us that he had come full circle.

Not only was he here with his students who were leading the parade, but he had himself been part of the very first parade back in 1987.

And that's something that's happening more and more as the parade marches towards its half century.

Well, having experienced that as a college student, being in the first London New Year's Day Parade, I think that experience opened my eyes to a lot of things It really was.

That was 1987.

That was a long time ago, and I was a senior in college, and I marched baritone with the band, and I had never been overseas.

It was my first big trip.

Marching in the parade was just so wonderful.

I'll never forget it.

We stayed in the Tower Thistle Hotel, and I remember opening up the drapes in the hotel room.

And this is, of course, late December 1986, I guess.

And, late December, opened it up, and there was the Tower Bridge at sunset.

And of course, immediately I get out my camera, I start taking pictures, and I got the most incredible pictures out of my hotel room of the Tower Bridge from that night.

Checking in was like, wow, we are here.

Welcome to the fact that you'll be participating in the very first ever Lord Mayor of Westminster's New Year's Day parade of marching bands in the City of Westminster.

Those were really special memories.

But I remember the parade well and how exciting it was to be a part of that.

Reflecting back over the years, I'm proud of how many people have shared the same experience as Gary.

Memories made at the London Parade last a lifetime, not just for those taking part, but also for all of those who watch either on the streets or at home on TV, and get to experience the joy and celebration of the event.

Here at Harmony High School, the students are looking ahead to their visit to London, where we'll be welcoming them to the London Parade in 2027.

Talking to the students here, and knowing what they'll be bringing to the parade fills me with confidence that the future of the London Parade is in safe hands.

And I know they'll have a great time seeing the sights and meeting so many new people.

We've welcomed performers from all around the world, Dancers, musicians, magicians, horse riders, bike riders, acrobats, singers, cloggers, and choirs.

But I think for me, perhaps the most satisfying thing of all is seeing how much all of the young people get out of the experience.

It really is something that changes their young lives forever.

I think London Parade can be justifiably proud of what it has achieved in 40 years.

The involvement of all of London's boroughs, joining together to show the very best of London on a world stage, showing that London is one of the most diverse, friendly and successful cities on the planet, donating millions of pounds for local charities and helping to raise many millions more through our London Boroughs competition, but above all, creating a joyful, spectacular start to every new year for Londoners and visitors alike to our great capital for four decades.

No matter who you are 'Cause we're all invited London united, whoa-oh-oh-oh Yes, we're all excited London united, who-oh-oh-oh 'Cause we're all invited London united Clap your hands and stomp your feet We'll keep on moving to this brand new beat But as much as anything, I'm excited to see what comes next.

Wherever you'll be on the 1st of January, I do hope you'll join us for the London Parade 2026.

As we celebrate 40 wonderful years with the very best entertainment, music, dance, and performances from the heart of London.

We'll see you there.

It's now or never We're reaching out our hands Let's come together no matter who you are 'Cause we're all invited London united, who-oh-oh-oh Yes, we're all excited London United whoa-oh-oh-oh 'Cause we're all invited London united Watch out!

We're here!

Everybody stand clear We're too hot to handle, there is no doubt We're too hot to handle, we'll knock you out