London's world famous New Year's Eve fireworks were spectacular. The moment Big Ben struck midnight, 12,000 fireworks were set off from the London Eye on the south bank of the Thames to create a breathtaking display of gold, silver and coloured showers and glittering trails across the skies. The mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, had promised a "wicked" show that would out-do rival cities like Sydney and New York and he delivered.

Music blared from speakers, boats packed with revellers cruised up and down the river and journalists from around the world pitched their cameras at strategic points waiting for the countdown to midnight.

The firework celebrations were themed around the mayor's new women’s equality campaign - #BehindEveryGreatCity. A video was released calling on Londoners, businesses and organisations across the capital to make their New Year’s resolutions for gender equality in 2018. Famous Londoners Naomi Campbell, Linda Robson, Gurinder Chadha, Ray BLK, Susie Rodgers, Tinie Tempah, Abbie Eaton, and Sonia Friedman appear in the video alongside nurses, firefighters, police officers and other workers to champion the fact that it is the achievements and contributions of women, from all walks of life, which make cities like London great.

The mayor’s campaign celebrates the role London played in the women’s suffrage campaign and marks the progress that has been made on women’s equality over the past 100 years. In a New Year's Eve statement, Sadiq Khan pledged to tackle gender inequality in all its shapes and forms: "Over the next year, and beyond, I commit to redoubling my efforts to fight for gender equality.  And I will be encouraging Londoners to celebrate the women of all ages, ethnicities, faiths and backgrounds who make London the greatest city in the world.”

read post