Olympics: Scores miss opening ceremony action

Duncan Skipper (R) and his friends Natasha Markley (L) and Aaron Moss (centre) had tickets to the Hyde Park opening ceremony concert. Swarms of hopeful punters were turned away and had to go elsewhere to see the action. Photo / Troy Rawhiti-Forbes

A series of misunderstandings kept swarms of people away from official public viewings of the Olympic Games opening ceremony in London yesterday.

Hours before the scheduled start of the event, thousands packed into Trafalgar Square having heard there would be big screens erected for the Games. There, they learned the screens would be raised for the Paralympics only.

Disappointed but undeterred, they headed to Hyde Park to enjoy the broadcast and concert there. Only they couldn't, because the show was for ticketed attendees only.

This was advertised online and in the papers, but was lost on the waves of people washing up at the gates and then drifting away from what shaped up to be a scalper's paradise.

Kiwis appeared to have their act together. Duncan Skipper, at Hyde Park with two friends, said the group's tickets were bought in advance.

The unlucky ones were directed to Victoria Park, a big-screen viewing area across town where the only price to pay was punctuality. With time running out, and with London's public transport struggling under epic levels of stress, punters poured into the tube stations and suffered cramped, sweaty rides to Mile End.

Victoria Park's setup had an estimated capacity of 20,000 and, with 90 minutes to go, event staff estimated half of the people queuing up wouldn't get in.

Those who did enjoyed a fairground atmosphere, and the opening ceremony via a stuttering live feed that almost petered out when Rowan Atkinson, as Mr Bean, put his touches on a Chariots of Fire tribute.

The predominantly British audience did then what they did best during the Blitz. They kept calm, and carried on.