Piccadilly Circus billboards switched off as work begins on new state-of-the-art advertising screen

Pic:The advertising screens before they were switched off.
Staff reporter(wp/es):

The Piccadilly Lights were this morning turned off as major redevelopment work on the central London landmark began.

At about 8.30am on Monday, the Lights, the large advertising screens in Piccadilly Circus, first showed a montage of historic images before a countdown was started and the screens turned off.

The Lights have only been blank on a handful of occasions before - for the duration of the Second World War, Winston Churchill’s funeral in 1965 and Princess Diana’s funeral in 1997.

The screens will be replaced with one curved screen of the same size that will be the highest resolution LED display of its size in the world. The work is set to be finished by Autumn.

Six advertisers will share the screen, which will be able to live-stream video, show weather and sports results and social media feeds. 

Coca-Cola, which has had a advertising space at the Lights since 1954, has renewed its advertising deal at the Lights, with other brands yet to be announced. 

Vasiliki Arvaniti, Portfolio Manager at Land Securities, which has owned the Lights since the Seventies, said: “This is a huge day for Piccadilly Lights and though it will be a strange feeling to see them go dark, we’re incredibly excited about their future.”

Ros Morgan, Chief Executive Heart of London Business Alliance, said: “The light’s transformation into Europe’s largest single digital screen is a showcase of London’s innovation and will bring visitors an enhanced entertainment experience, whilst offering businesses a world-leading platform to engage with the 400 million people who visit the wider area each year.”

An estimated 100 million people pass through Piccadilly Circus and pass the lights annually. The first illuminated advertising space in Piccadilly Circus as a sign for Perrier which was installed in 1908.

£235m is left unused on Oyster cards..

Staff reporter(wp/es):

Money left on unused Oyster cards is increasing by £1 million a month and now stands at more than £235 million, official figures reveal today.

The number of “dormant” cards - those that have not been used for more than 12 months - has jumped to nearly 43.7 million, up two million since the end of June last year.

The figures sparked fresh demands for Transport for London (TfL) to make it easier for passengers to claim refunds.

The amount of money left on the cards has risen to nearly £236.6 million, with one of the reasons the 48-hour restriction on Oyster refunds. This means that if someone buys an Oyster card, pays the £5 deposit and puts money on it they can only claim a refund after 48 hours, which is hitting tourists and visitors to the capital.

The increase in contactless travel is another explanation.

Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat member of the London Assembly who highlighted the statistics, said: “Fourteen years since the start of Oyster the amount left on dormant Oyster cards has reached a staggering level with TfL now sitting on a massive cash pile of a quarter of a billion pounds.

“TfL should never forget that this is the public’s money they are holding and people should be able to reclaim it as easily as TfL take money from passengers in the first place.”

Ms Pidgeon added: “Ending the 48 hour restriction facing passengers before they can claim back their deposit and any remaining balance on a card is long overdue, and is just one of the many changes TfL need to make to ensure that people can easily get back their own money left on unused Oyster cards.”

A recent report by the watchdog London TravelWatch examining the impact of the Tube ticket offices closures recommended changes to the system including the removal of the 48-hour restriction.

It stated: “Passengers currently have to wait 48-hours from purchasing an Oyster card before being able to get back their deposit and any remaining balance on the card.

“This does not represent good customer practice especially for visitors to London who are only here for a short period of time.

“It should be possible for customers to get a refund on their Oyster card whenever required.”

Shashi Verma, TfL’s chief technology officer, said: “We’re committed to ensuring that our customers can get back the credit on their Oyster cards if that is what they want.

“That is why we regularly publish the amount of credit on cards and how people can obtain a refund whenever they wish.

“These can be obtained from any Tube station ticket machine, our Visitor Information Centres or by contacting our customer team on 0343 222 1234.”

Woman robbed in 'homophobic' attack outside Nando's restaurant in South London Denmark Hill

Pic:  A woman was mugged outside a Nando's restaurant in Denmark Hill
Crime reporter(wp/es):

A woman was grabbed by the neck and mugged during a homophobic attack outside a Nando’s restaurant in south London, police said.

The victim, a 37-year-old woman, was robbed outside the chicken restaurant in Denmark Hill late at night.

Scotland Yard she was approached by a group outside the restaurant between 10.15pm and 11.15pm on Friday, December 30.

Police said that one of the group, a woman, made homophobic slurs towards the victim before grabbing her around the neck and forcing her to hand over her belongings.

The suspect then threatened the victim and fled the scene.

Detectives from Lambeth Community Safety Unit are appealing for anyone who was in or around the area and may have seen the incident, or the suspect fleeing the scene, to contact police.

A 36-year-old woman has been arrested on suspicion of robbery in connection with the investigation.

She has been released on bail until late February pending further enquiries.