A coach driver was caught unwittingly blocking crowds of people from seeing London‘s famous New Year firework display after pulling up in front of them as the clock struck midnight.
The 12-minute display from the Mayor kicked off at midnight as Brits across the country celebrated the beginning of 2026, and was broadcast on the BBC.
The 100,000 people lining the banks of the River Thames and millions more watching at home were treated to a large display, soundtrack and images projected onto the London Eye.
But some were left bitterly disappointed after waiting for hours, only to have the National Express coach block their view entirely.
Video footage posted on social media showed how the coach drove right in front of a crowd of people gathered to watch the display as the UK entered the new year.
It then stopped, blocking hundreds of people’s view of the long-awaited event.
The coach did continue on its journey a short time afterwards, but not before audience members had missed a crucial part of the display.
Sharing the video on TikTok, the woman who is thought to have filmed the incident wrote: ‘National Express really said quick how do I make this about me.’
Video footage posted on social media showed how the coach drove right in front of a crowd of people gathered to watch the display in London as the UK entered the new year
The coach did continue on its journey a short time afterwards, but not before many in the audience members had missed the a crucial part of the display
But the coach company shamelessly hit back in hilarious comments on her post, saying: ‘2026 is my year’.
After the official London Eye account added ‘I am so sorry diva,’ National Express replied: ‘I’m not’.
Social media users praised National Express for making ‘the best comment of the year’.
But in a separate comment, the firm did also offer to give the TikToker free tickets in return for ruining her view of the fireworks.
The video has already been watched 320,000 times and amassed some 34,000 likes.
Those in the crowd could be heard booing the coach driver as they pulled up in front of them as many were attempting to film the display on their phones.
The fireworks themselves, organised by London Mayor Sadiq Khan, also came under criticism from many Brits.
Some viewers were less than impressed with this year’s offering, accusing organisers of featuring an ‘advert’ for the new Wicked movie and criticised it for not featuring Ozzy Osbourne, who died earlier in 2025.
The 100,000 people lining the banks of the River Thames this year and millions more watching on the BBC saw thousands of fireworks go off, set to music and with visual animations
The 12-minute display from the Mayor kicked off at midnight as Brits across the country celebrated the beginning of 2026, and was broadcast on the BBC
Cynthia Erivo, who plays Elphaba in Wicked: For Good, featured in the London 2026 fireworks, which some viewers accused of ‘advertising’ the movie
More than 12,000 fireworks and more than 400 lights illuminated the night sky around the London Eye, in what is the largest annual firework display in Europe
The display from the Mayor featured prominent visuals and songs from Wicked: For Good in an ‘event partnership’ between his office and Universal Pictures.
Cynthia Erivo, who stars as Elphaba in the movie, recorded a message encouraging people to ’embrace the magic that we all have inside and come together, for good’.
One tweeted: ‘I found the fireworks boring, and why was there basically an advert for Wicked in the middle?’
Another wrote: ‘The wicked ad in the middle of the fireworks OMFG. Late-stage capitalism has gone too far.’ And a third said: ‘The Wicked ad felt weird though, yes? Why did my fireworks come with a side of marketing?’
The song ‘Defying Gravity’ played as fireworks lit up the sky in the film’s pink and green colours along with images of Elphaba and Glinda, played by Ariana Grande.
The message from Erivo – recently made an MBE – said: ‘Hello fellow Londoners. As we travel the Yellow Brick Road into a New Year, let us stand for positivity and hope, embrace the magic that we all have inside and come together, for good.’
Other viewers pointed out that there was no reference to Ozzy Osbourne after the Black Sabbath heavy metal singer died in July aged 76.
The production used a technology called hologauze, which uses semi-transparent fabric to create 3D-like visual effects by projecting images onto it.
Some of the images displayed during the fireworks celebrated some of the highlights of the year, including celebrating England’s women’s rugby team winning the world cup and the Lionesses’ victory at the Euros – as well as the men’s Ryder cup success.
The display was set to a soundtrack which also included the likes of Raye, Sabrina Carpenter, Ed Sheeran and Coldplay and featuring voice overs from Celia Imrie, Andrew Cotter and Alison Hammond.
More than 12,000 fireworks and more than 400 lights illuminated the night sky around the London Eye, in what is the largest annual firework display in Europe.