London fireworks to be broadcast live in 360-degrees by BBC, letting people watch them in virtual reality

The live broadcast on YouTube will let people feel like they're actually there – but without the horrendous queues

Andrew Griffin
Saturday 31 December 2016 21:36 GMT
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Fireworks light up the London skyline and Big Ben just after midnight on January 01, 2016 in London, England
Fireworks light up the London skyline and Big Ben just after midnight on January 01, 2016 in London, England

The BBC is going to let everyone who missed out on London's world famous New Year's Eve fireworks get a chance to feel like they are getting involved.

The 110,000 tickets sold out long before the fireworks are actually due to take place. Even actually getting hold of one isn't a guarantee of a good time – going to the show means queueing up and waiting in the cold.

Instead, the BBC is offering a way of feeling like you're there – with the exception of the cold and the queues. It will broadcast the fireworks in 360-degrees, letting people looking around and see everything they would if they were actually in central London for the firework show.

As well as showing the fireworks and the rest of the entertainment in the traditional way, as it always has, it will use the YouTube app to show them using the latest video technology.

The video can be viewed in the latest version of Chrome, Firefox or Opera on a desktop or laptop computer. And on iOS or Android it can be watched within the YouTube app.

The latter has the advantage of moving around as the phone is moved, adding an extra level of realism. And it becomes even more realistic with a virtual reality headset like a Google Cardboard or Daydream View – letting people strap their phone to their head and get the full experience of actually seeing the fireworks.

The BBC also recommends making sure that you're on a good Wi-Fi connection to make sure that you get the full video.

The livestream will begin about 10 minutes before midnight local time. The main event will kick off as 2017 arrives, at midnight.

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