2012 has been a landmark year for London thanks to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and the Diamond Jubilee, which celebrated 60 years of the Queen’s reign. And to top it all off, London’s newest skyscraper the Shard was inaugurated, transforming London’s skyline. Here are a few of our favourite images from an amazing and unforgettable year.

London said a big thank you to the athletes of Team GB and ParalympicsGB yesterday during a parade through Central London.

Athletes including Mo Farah, Victoria Pendleton, Sarah Storey, Sir Chris Hoy and Ellie Simmons showed off their medals from floats that travelled from Mansion House, through Trafalgar Square and ended at The Mall, in front of Buckingham Palace.

The floats were led by two giant lion puppets, a steel band and dancers.It was also a chance to pay tribute to the police, armed services and volunteers who contributed to the Games.

British Airways led a flypast with the Red Arrows over The Mall, and the Pet Shop Boys played some of their biggest hits on a stage outside Buckingham Palace.

At the end of the parade, Princess Anne, Prime Minister David Cameron, and Mayor of London Boris Johnson gave speeches praising “the best ever” Games.

Did you go to the parade? Don’t forget to add your photos to our Flickr pool.

The show opened with a set featuring iconic London landmarks. I spotted:

• The London Eye
• St Paul’s Cathedral
• The Gherkin
• Battersea Power Station
• Tower Bridge
• Royal Albert Hall
• And last and but not least Big Ben (out of which appeared Timothy Spall as Winston Churchill!)

This section was accompanied by artists from top West End show, Stomp.

We were then treated to a journey through British music with a focus on artists from the last 50 years including The Kinks, George Michael, Queen, Tinie Tempah, Jessie J, Kaiser Chiefs, Liam Gallagher, Take That and The Who. You can explore the rich tradition of British pop music at the British Music Experience or revel in Queen’s music at We Will Rock You!

The Spice Girls’ performance proved particularly popular and fans can look forward to a brand new musical – Viva Forever – premiering in London in November.

The ceremony also celebrated fashion with appearance of top British models including Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell. You can find many top British designers in London along with some of the world best shopping districts. Fashionistas should also head to the V&A and Fashion and Textile Museum.

There was an injection of comedy with Eric Idle’s rendition of ‘Always Look on the Bright Side of Life’. You can enjoy this and other Monty Python classics in popular musical, Spamalot.

The Olympic flag was passed to Rio ahead of the 2016 Olympic Games and London’s Olympic Cauldron extinguished in a dance sequence starring Darcey Bussell. You can discover more about the cauldron at the current Thomas Heatherwick exhibition.

The athletes thoroughly enjoyed the show and Team GB were celebrating their success. I can’t wait to join them for the Our Greatest Team victory parade in London on 10 September.

Now eyes turn to the London 2012 Paralympic Games from 29 August until 9 September, which promise to be another impressive display of sporting prowess and courage. Beyond that I look forward to the legacy of London 2012.

What was your favourite moment of the London 2012 Olympic Games?

If you find a giant javelin piercing your local park, or a 3m tall shot-put sinking into the pavement outside your closest Tube station, don’t worry, these aren’t Olympic-related hallucinations.

Part of “Gifts of the Olympic Gods”, these 12 sculptures – including javelins, shot-puts, and bows and arrows – have been installed around the city, evoking the Greek gods in whose honour the original Olympic Games were held.  And up-close, the impressive sculptures really do look like they have been dropped from a great height! Unsuspecting pedestrians beware.

You can see the giant sculptures at the following locations:

Shot-Put

• Archbishop Park, SE1
• Sloane Square, SW1
• Royal Naval College, Greenwich,SE10
• Shell Building Plinth, York Road, SE1
• Kennington Park Triangle, SE11

Javelin

• Westfield London, W12
• Lewisham roundabout, SE13
• Canada Water Plaza, SE16
• Jubilee Park, E14

Bow and Arrows

• Truman Brewery, Brick Lane, E1
• General Gordon Square, SE18
• King’s College, Guy’s Hospital, SE1

The gifts are part of the Mayor of London’s Summer Like No Other programme. Find out about other “Wonders” cropping up over London during the Games at www.molpresents.com/wonder

Have you seen any of the Gifts of the Olympic Gods? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.

With one week to go to the London 2012 Olympic Women’s Marathon on 5 August, we thought we’d share this fab video of the route with you. This will be the same course for the Men’s race on 12 August.

Are you going to watch the race? Let us know where you’re planning to stand. And if you take any great photos, don’t forget to share them in our flickrpool!

Sheep, a huge bell, a miniature Stonehenge, David Beckham and some NHS nurses. This much we know will be in the London 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony on Friday evening. A global audience of four billion people are expected to tune into the show which is called Isles of Wonder, inspired by a line in Shakespeare’s The Tempest. Artistic director Danny Boyle has kept most details under wraps, but we can say with certainty that it starts at 9pm, and that you’d be mad not to watch it.

London Live
Friday is the opening night for the Olympic London Live sites at Hyde Park and Victoria Park. In Hyde Park, the ceremony will be shown on screens alongside a celebration concert with acts representing each part of the UK – Snow Patrol from Northern Ireland, Stereophonics for Wales, Duran Duran representing England and Paolo Nutini waving the flag for Scotland. Tickets are £60 and are still available. If you just want to watch the ceremony in a crowd, you can head to the Victoria Park site which is free entry.

Tower of London
If you’re feeling flush, you could pay for an exciting Opening Ceremony dinner at the Tower of London House of Nations for just £139. Hosted by four-time record breaking swimmer and Strictly Come Dancing star, Mark Foster, you’ll enjoy a champagne and Pimm’s reception in the Tower of London’s moat, an exclusive private tour of the Crown Jewels, a delicious three-course meal with all inclusive drinks, footage of the Opening Ceremony and live entertainment.

Greenwich
You can also catch all the Opening Ceremony action at Greenwich Summer Festival’s Gala Weekend. As well as the big screens, there’ll be live entertainment, starting with music on the bandstand at 6pm. Greenwich’s very own Hangar Arts Trust will then perform a cabaret of aerial circus in a high-impact, thrilling show full of beautiful and apparently impossible human feats, before the Opening Ceremony kicks off at 9pm.

General Gordon Square, Woolwich
General Gordon Square in Woolwich is hosting one of two big screens set up by the BBC in London for outdoor summer screenings. It will show the ceremony outside for free in the newly landscaped square, which offers bench seating and food stalls and street performers to get you in the party mood.

Walthamstow Town Square
Another BBC big screen will be beaming the ceremony to Walthamstow Town Square in North London. Seating will be set up so crowds can watch in comfort.

Broadgate
The Broadgate development in the Square Mile is home to some of the world’s biggest companies, and this summer it is also the base for three big screens which will all show the Opening Ceremony. Take your pick from Exchange Square, Broadgate Circle and Finsbury Avenue.

Novikov’s Beach Party at Waterside House
Top Mayfair restaurant Novikov is heading east this Friday to set up an all-day Opening Ceremony beach party – complete with sand and beach loungers – at Waterside House in Royal Victoria Dock. You can watch the show while sipping cocktails and listening to DJ sets. Tickets are £25.

In The Pub
Hundreds of top London pubs will be showing the all action on big screens, so have a look at the watering holes near you. We suggest The Hanbury Arms in Islington, The Lauriston in Hackney, the Water Poet in Spitalfields and the Clapham Grand in Clapham Junction, all of which will be putting on amazing parties.

Where will you be watching? Let us know below.

It’s just ONE WEEK to go to the London 2012 Olympic Games. Here’s a great video, showing the development of the Olympic site, and some of the stories of the people involved.

For more London videos, check out our YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/visitlondonvideo

The Olympic Games aren’t just about victory at the finish line – creativity and design have played a part in making the ultimate sporting event in the world happen. Make sure you celebrate the artists and engineers involved as well as the athletes by visiting one of these top Olympic exhibitions this summer. They’re all free.

Design Stories and After the Party at RIBA
The Royal Institute of British Architects is putting on two Olympic exhibitions to toast the architecture behind the Games. Design Stories: The Architecture Behind 2012 explores the ideas and complex engineering behind the brand new Olympic venues like the Aquatics Centre. It compiles drawings, images, videos and detailed models. The second exhibition, After the Party: The Legacy of Celebration, compares the UK’s Olympic buildings to efforts for previous Olympic Games and celebrations and asks what happens to monuments celebrating events after all the hoopla has passed. 
Design Stories: 25 Jun-21 Sep
After The Party: 25 Jun-5 Oct

Road to 2012 at the National Portrait Gallery
None of the glory on the track and court would be possible without all the work behind the scenes of the Olympic Games. This free series of photographs at the National Portrait Gallery features not only the athletes but people who have put the event together, such as apprentices from the Olympic Park and the team that led the bid for London to hold the Games. It’s the final part of  the BT Road to 2012 project which has commissioned leading photographers to document the build up to the event. Katherine Green’s images of sports communities in London’s East End sit alongside the display. 
19 Jul-23 Sep

The Olympic Journey at the Royal Opera House
For two weeks only, an impressive collection of Olympic artefacts will set up camp at the Royal Opera House for The Olympic Journey: The Story of the Games. The exhibition traces the evolution of the Olympic Games from the ancient Greek games 3,000 years ago. The highlight has to be seeing every single summer Olympic medal since 1896 and every summer Olympic torch since 1936. 
28 Jul-12 Aug

London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games Posters at Tate Britain
The posters for the Olympic Games have always reflected the art – and the mood – of the city that hosts them. Artists like Tracey Emin and Chris Ofili are among the 12 to put their mark on the official posters for London 2012. Screen prints and lithographs of their creations will be among those on show at Tate Britain as part of the London 2012 Festival.
21 Jun-23 Sep

Olympics Through the Ages at Westfield Stratford City
Award-winning photography will showcase iconic sporting moments at this exhibition in the Getty Images Gallery. Taking place within walking distance from the Olympic Park, it looks at the Olympic Games through a camera lens – from the first modern event in Athens in 1896 through to Beijing in 2008. 
27 Jun-30 Sep

What will be the most iconic image from the London 2012 Olympic Games? Comment below and let us know.

Cadbury is set to make all your chocolate-infused dreams come true this summer in London.

For the duration of the Olympic Games, the chocolate manufacturer is bringing the magical, mythical world of Joyville to Hyde Park. And guess what – it’s free and there’s chocolate!

Joyville invites visitors to enjoy a tasting zone, chocolate-themed-experiences, and the chance to take part in a virtual race against Rebecca Adlington to win a chocolate medal. There’s also a Great Games Hall where visitors can have a go at “sports with a Cadbury twist”.

Cadbury House is part of the BT London Live site at Hyde Park, a free event offering open air screenings of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, plus on site attractions and entertainment.

Cadbury House is open from 27 July to 12 August.