It's the moment everybody has been waiting for - the opening ceremony of the Olympics is just hours away.
The two dress rehearsals on Wednesday and Thursday received rave reviews from the lucky few who were able to get a sneak peak.
The three-hour long event is expected to attract an television audience of a billion people.
The day of celebration began at 8.12am today with a mass bell ringing.
The opening ceremony has a pastoral theme, with 2,000 trees and 100 hectares of landscaping.
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A concert will also be held in Hyde Park tonight to celebrate the start of the Games. Artists including Snow Patrol and Duran Duran will perform.
Prime Minister David Cameron says: 'It's a great opportunity to show the world the best of Britain, a country that's got an incredibly rich past but also a very exciting future.
'Someone asked me yesterday what face of Britain do we want to put forward - is it Blur or the Beefeaters? - and frankly it's both.'
Coverage of the event will start on BBC 1 from 7pm.
THE LONDON 2012 OLYMPICS
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By Natasha Wynarczyk - Friday 27 July 2012
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