Lord Mayor’s Show fireworks display likely to be axed

Next week the City of London's policy and resources committee will be asked to approve the cancellation of this year's fireworks display, which had been scheduled for 10 November.

Instead the £125,000 budget will be reallocated to a light show around the Bank junction in the Square Mile itself.

Around 100,000 people gather on the South Bank, north bank, Waterloo Bridge and Blackfriars Bridge to watch the fireworks display which is usually held at 5.15pm on Lord Mayor's Show day and lasts around 10 minutes.

The fireworks are launched from a barge moored on the Thames.

"Anecdotal evidence suggests limited public recognition of the connection between the fireworks and the show, and that both events attract different audiences," wrote the City's director of communications Bob Roberts in a report for the policy and resources committee.

"It also suggests the fireworks are associated more with City Hall than the City Corporation. The location of the fireworks is within Westminster's boundaries, and whilst consideration has been given to moving it to another venue closer to the City, eg in the vicinity of Tower Bridge, there is insufficient viewing area for the anticipated crowd numbers, estimated to be around 100,000."

The loss of the fireworks is not the only change to this year's Lord Mayor's Show, with the early morning river flotilla featuring the Queen's Row Barge Gloriana also removed from the schedule.