I haven’t seen the time ball drop on the Greenwich Observatory, which happens every day at 1pm. Karen has, and she described the experience as “a bit of an anti-climax”, David’s words being “Is that it?” It seems that the tradition lives on however, as a large illuminated ball is used in Times Square, gracefully descending a flagpole to count in the new year.

The ball has been upgraded and made even more hi-tech for 2008, the BBC angling the story as going green. (For hooting heck’s sake, ten toasters for an evening isn’t going to save the planet guys!)

It is a rather cool piece of kit, made by Philips and using LED lighting. (No nasty mercury pollutants there then.)

There is an interesting history of the Times Square Ball online and here is a YouTube of the launch back in October.

If you are a really sad billy-no-mates and find yourself surfing here tonight at round about 11:58, watch this YouTube for last year’s celebrations.

This is a pretty cool event and I contrast it with one New Year in Coventry when the revellers surrounded the Lady Godiva Statue in Broadgate waiting for the chimes on the peeping tom clock. Unfortunately, the Council had fitted a device to suppress the clock after 11pm and before 7am in deference to guests at the nearby Hotel Leofric.

(I wasn’t there- I had a real party to go to, I read about it in the Coventry Evening Telegraph afterwards.)

Here is the aforementioned clock in action, don’t hold your breath…