After 70 days and 8,000 miles, the Olympic torch sweeps up the Thames to wave of cheers for flame's big day ...

Mission accomplished: After 70 days and 8,000 miles, the Olympic torch sweeps up the Thames to wave of cheers for flame's big day

• The torch began its final leg in London at 6.55am at Bushey Park and was carried through Hampton Court Palace
• It was then carried on to the royal barge Gloriana by Olympic gold-medal winning rower Matthew Pinsent
• Olympians young and old took it in turns to row the flame downstream to Tower Bridge
• A mini flotilla of 50 boats accompanied the flame as it made the final leg of its epic 8,000 mile journey
• It will be carried into the Stratford stadium in east London this evening and lit by a mystery VIP

They stood knee deep in the shallows of the Thames, hung from office windows and lined every street along the way. By the time the Olympic torch set off on its final journey to the Games yesterday, there were hundreds and thousands of people, cheering, applauding... and waiting.

For the next few hours, the flame that had made its way these last 70 days on an 8,000-mile trek around the British Isles was taken on board the royal barge Gloriana and rowed – at long last – towards its ultimate destiny.

That meant not just lighting a cauldron to mark the start of the 2012 Olympics – but burning bright for Britain. Job done; mission accomplished.

Mission accomplished: The Olympic torch arrives at Tower Bridge and the final torch bearer Amber Charles holds it proudly on a floating pontoon

The end: The Gloriana arrives at Tower Bridge, left, where it is seen through the Olympic rings and right, Amber Charles is the final person to hold the torch

Proud: Thousands squeeze on to Tower Bridge to watch the waterborne spectacle as it comes to an end shortly before 1pm

All smiles: A close up shot of Amber Charles who smiles as she holds the flame and right torch bearers laugh on board the Gloriana 

This was probably the most spectacular showcase of the flame’s UK tour, the last symbolic moment before the Games began.

Prime Minister David Cameron set the tone by declaring it was going to be ‘an incredible few weeks’. Then the world stood by as the event that has been dubbed the greatest show on Earth got set to go.

The flame had been carried by 8,000 torchbearers since arriving in Cornwall from Athens, igniting a spirit that culminated in a massive turnout for its finale yesterday.

An estimated 14million had glimpsed it, securing a once in a generation chance to witness it being paraded for the first time in this country since 1948.

Landmark: Torch bearer Jimmy Hazard, 19, from Bristol who was nominated for his achievements in weightlifting holds the torch as the vessel passes Big Ben

End is in sight: The flotilla makes its way past the historic Tower of London just minutes away from completing the journey along the Thames

Excitement: Throngs of people line the River Thames as the Gloriana sails past carrying the Olympic flame on the final leg if its journey through London

Majestic: The Gloriana makes headway as it powers down the Thames. The barge was painstakingly built by 60 craftsmen over the course of four years

Amazing: London looks magnificent with Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament in the background as the mini flotilla makes its way through the capita

Sailing away: A close-up view of the flotilla as it passes under one of London's bridges accompanied. The flame can be seen glowing in a special cauldron onboard 

Support: Spectators sip Champagne and wear glasses shaped like the Olympic rings for the occasion while Union Jack memorabilia is out in force again

History may also record that it appeared to have endowed much of the nation with the same kind of patriotism and optimism that hallmarked the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.

Yesterday’s journey began at 7.44am in Hampton Court Palace, as four-times Olympic gold medallist Sir Matthew Pinsent carried the flame to the royal rowbarge that was presented to the Queen to mark her jubilee celebrations.

Bearing a flaming cauldron and an Olympic flag, the £1million vessel took centre stage in preparation for the opening of the Games – ‘the people’s ship’, as one commentator described it yesterday, the main focal point of an event that will be broadcast to four billion people around the globe.

In scenes that mirrored the jubilee river pageant, a flotilla of boats and little ships trailed it all the way to the shadow of Tower Bridge, where the flame was kept until the moment arrived to do its Olympic duty.

And the spectacle of seeing so many people celebrating the arrival, at long last, of the Olympic torch in the capital is one which, according to London Mayor Boris Johnson, helped to ensure that even ‘Olympo-sceptics’, as he called them, were ‘coming down with the bug’.

On the water: Rowers make their way down the River Thames to Tower Bridge and the rain is managing to stay away despite the overcast weather

Patriotic: Huge crowds line the river bank and some squeeze into small rowing boats on board to catch a glimpse of the historic moment

Flamin' good: Akosua Scantlebury, 25, from Bow in London, who was nominated for her work with youth clubs, holds the Olympic flame on board the vessel 

Waiting game: Dozens of spectators stand knee-deep in the water poised with their cameras waiting for the Olympic barge Gloriana to meander down the River Thames

Don't get in a flap: Even the geese are pleased to see the Gloriana as they accompany the vessel on its journey along the River Thames

Flashback: The scene on the River Thames this morning looks almost identical to the Queen's Diamond Jubilee River Pageant - including the grey rain-filled clouds

Awe-inspiring: A triumphant torch bearer carries the flame on the Gloriana as 16 oarsmen power the boat along the river

THE FINAL COUNTDOWN...

7am: The Olympic flame was carried through Hampton Court Palace.

7.30am: The flame boarded the royal rowbarge Gloriana, and sailed along the River Thames.

12.45pm: Gloriana arrives at Tower Bridge, where the flame will remain at City Hall until its journey to the Olympic Stadium.

4pm: Doors open at the BT London Live Opening Ceremony Celebration Concert in Hyde Park. Snow Patrol, Stereophonics,and  Duran Duran will perform for tens of thousands of revellers. There is also a music and sports event at Victoria Park in Tower Hamlets.

4.15pm: The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh will host a reception for around 100 heads of state and heads of government. US First Lady Michelle Obama will be among the guests

5pm: The first spectators will file into the Olympic Stadium ahead of film director Danny Boyle's £27 million opening ceremony.

9pm: The show gets under way in front of  62,000 people in the stadium and one billion  worldwide. The flame light the cauldron in the Olympic Park to mark the official opening. Meanwhile, the countdown clock in Trafalgar Square will reach zero at 9pm.

12am: The opening ceremony will conclude between midnight and 12.30am with a performance by Sir Paul McCartney.

Toby Gould, a London-born crew member on the Trinity Tide, which sailed alongside Gloriana, looked back down the river and declared: ‘I was so inspired by this day. It was a privilege to take part in the last leg of the torch relay, of what will surely be the greatest Games of the modern Olympics, and in my home city.’

The route took Gloriana past some of London’s most famous landmarks, including the London Eye, the Houses of Parliament and St Paul’s Cathedral.

Everywhere she went there was applause from the crowds.

Annabelle Cavendish, waiting for its arrival at Tower Bridge with her three-year-old daughter Alice, said: ‘I couldn’t get tickets for the Games so I just wanted to be part of it.

‘When Alice grows up she’ll be able to tell her own children she was here. I don’t want to get too soppy about it, but that makes me feel rather proud.’

Across the city – and echoed around the country – Gloriana’s majestic voyage was accompanied by a startling soundtrack of bells as the Games were ushered in. 

Big Ben broke tradition for the first time since King George VI’s funeral in 1952 by sounding continuously for 30 bongs. 

It rang at 8.12am, precisely 12 hours before the 20:12hrs landmark that would be celebrated a few miles away during the opening of the Games.

Church bells, cowbells, bicycle bells and mobile phone ring-tones joined a three-minute peel, creating a cacophony across town.

The idea came from Turner Prize-winning artist Martin Creed, whose other creations have included an artwork consisting of a light being switched on and off.

Yesterday he watched TV coverage from a studio inside the Olympic Park and declared his brainwave seemed to have ‘taken on a life of its own’.

Not far downriver, Gloriana’s crew tossed oars and gave three cheers before the last torchbearer, 22-year-old basketball player Amber Charles, who played a key role in London’s bid to host the Games, carried the flame into County Hall.

The identity of the person chosen to bear the flame aloft into the stadium was still hours from being revealed. 

And then, as the slogans have been telling us for so long, they could finally ‘Let the Games begin !’

Historic moment: The royal barge drifts along the river carrying the famous Olympic flame. The barge was built especially for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations

All aboard: The last land-based torch bearer was four-time Olympic gold medalist Matthew Pinsent, who carried the flame on to the royal rowbarge

THE 94FT LONG ROYAL BARGE WHICH TOOK FOUR YEARS TO BUILD

It's 94ft long, decorated with gold leaf and ornate hand carvings and worth £1 million.

The Gloriana was the royal row barge which famously led a 1,000 strong flotilla along the Thames to mark the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.

The barge, which was rowed by 18 leading oarsmen including former Olympian Sir Steve Redgrave, was just in front of the Spirit of Chartwell, which carried the Queen and other members of the royal family along the river on June 3 to mark the 60th anniversary of Her Majesty's reign.

Gloriana was designed to resemble vessels in Canaletto's famous painting of an 18th century river pageant. It was funded by Lord Sterling and is the first Royal barge to be built for a century.

It was painstakingly put together over four years by 60 craftsmen and incorporates sweet chestnut wood taken from the Duchy of Cornwall estate

Downstream: The Gloriana was accompanied by its mini flotilla of boats and was given three cheers from those watching on the banks before it set off

 

Blaze of glory: Four-time Olympic gold medalist Matthew Pinsent holds the flame aloft before lighting a ceremonial cauldron on board the Gloriana

Moment to shine: Olympic Gold medallist rower Matthew Pinsent, boards the Gloriana with the famous flame and right stands in front of the Great Gate at the palace holding the flame. He was the last land based torchbearer before the flame took to the Thames for its journey east through the capital

Today's first torchbearer was Rosie Hynes, 18, from Manchester, who is part of the Great Britain under 20s basketball squad, who carried it in Bushey Park at 6.55am 

Lights fantastic: A dazzling firework show illuminates the Olympic stadium and Anish Kapoor's sculpture Orbit , during rehearsals in Stratford, East London

Jubilation: Florence Rowe, 81, who saw the Olympics in London in 1948, is cheered by the Camerons as she carries the flame in Downing Street yesterday

Open flame: The Olympic Torch is carried on top of an open top bus down Oxford Street as it nears the end of its 70 day journey

The London Olympic Torch Bus slowly makes its way through the crowds along Oxford Street as thousands attend to see it on its way to Hyde Park

Meeting royalty: The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry watch Wai-Ming hand over the London 2012 Olympic Torch to John Hulse at Buckingham Palace

Video: Rowers take the Olympic torch down the Thames in Royal barge

 

Video: Big Ben rings out across London marking the launch of the London 2012 Olympics