New Year’s Eve on Sydney Harbour, Australia
When the clock hits midnight, most of the world is ready to see what Sydney Harbour has to deliver. The New Year’s Eve Fireworks on our perfect and beautiful harbour has become a ‘must see’ on many vivid travellers list.
The first ever NYE fireworks display was in 1996, insired by the 100th Anniversary fireworks on the Brooklyn Bridge in 1993. This spectacular left one very famous pyrotechnician Syd Howard Fireworks to do something even bigger and better! Here the Harbour Bridge was already the centrepiece, along with barges on the water, city building such as the AMP building, Sydney Opera House and several in North Sydney.
Photo: www.abc.net.au
1997 saw the inclusion of Star City Casino as well as the 9pm family show in Darling Harbour and we saw the AMP Tower transform into the Olympic Torch in 1999 along with the word Eternity showing on the Harbour Bridge in honour of Arthur Stace.
2000 was obviously big in so many ways, being an Olympic Year, and Foti International Fireworks was now the designer, with a massive Bithday cake being displayed to celebrate 100 years of Australia as a nation and a Federation Star showing on the Harbour Bridge.
2001 saw a Dove as a sign of peace after the 911 terrorist attacks, 2002 saw the 9pm session being cancelled and fireworks off building being removed due to 90km/h winds…rescheduled for Australia Day, but cancelled again due to a total fire ban. 2003 saw the move from a 10 sec countown to 15 sec and for the first time the fireworks were launched off the vertical hangers of the bridge in a one-off display. 2004 went 3D with a haning disco ball, 2005 a beating heart and 2006 saw the barges return, 6 of them in fact!
2007 saw the bridge being the final display after the 6 barges before, 2008 saw a jump in expenditure on fireworks from $4 million to $5 million which included the bridge, seven city buildings and six barges – this being the biggest show staged to date. 2009 saw the entry of technology, microchip fireworks were used, lasting longer in the sky. They also synchronised better with the must. Again, $5 million over 12 minutes.
2010 the message was ‘make your mark’ for a better future, 2011 saw a 90 second countdown off the Harbour Bridge, 2012 saw Kylie Minigue be appointed as creative ambassador and the logo featured the letter ‘K‘ for her. in 2013 fireworks were launched from the Opera House using LED technology, with Reg Mombassa (MAMBO) being the years creative ambassador.
In 2014 the budget increased to $6.8 million, and the #SYDNYE hashtag etched its way into history. The 2015 theme was the ‘City of Colour’ with some extra 2400 fireworks being launched off the Harbour Bridge which was installed with lights that will be used every year for NYE. In 2016 there was a tribute to David Bowie, Prince and Gene Wilder who had passed that year, with the most elalborate and compelx fireworks display to date.
2017 saw the theme ‘Wonder‘ and a rainbow waterfall off the bridge giving the nod to the leglalisation of Gay Marriage. A new record was set: “8 tonnes of pyrotechnics (1 tonne more than previous years), 13000 aerial shells & 30000 shooting comets, the new jet-ski display, and a pyrotechnic countdown in the shape of numbers for the midnight show”
Source: read the full detailed article here