The London Eye is the focus of London’s televised New Year’s Eve fireworks display.
The giant observation wheel stands on the South Bank of the River Thames, opposite the Palace of Westminster. Its illuminated structure provides a distinctive central landmark for the annual display, while fireworks are launched from the river, nearby bridges, and barges.
London’s modern public fireworks tradition began in the early 2000s. The display became a major international broadcast, with the London Eye and the surrounding riverside forming its recognizable visual setting.
A frequent mix-up is to identify Big Ben as the focal landmark because its clock chimes are heard at midnight. Big Ben is important to the countdown, but the London Eye is the landmark most closely associated with the fireworks spectacle itself.