(ATR) For one night only the Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose in southwest was under the global spotlight as the Olympic torch arrived on time from Athens.
Several thousand people lined the streets near the air base and several hundred more greeted The Firefly, flight BA 2012, as it landed on a narrow air strip at 7.25pm BST, on schedule for a half-hour TV special on the Olympic torch relay on BBC's "The One Show".
The show of support from the British public was something of a surprise to London 2012 officials and members of the media who viewed the cheering hordes on the plane's descent.
Journalists had taken the opportunity to be snapped with the four lanterns strapped into seats 1A and 1B of British Airways flight BA2012, shortly before the Olympic flame and its standby lanterns were brought onto British soil. Three Metropolitan Police officers sporting LOCOG-branded tracksuits were charged with protecting the Olympic flame through the four-hour journey from Athens.
Princess Anne took the lanterns off the Airbus 319 dubbed "The Firefly"; David Beckham lit the Olympic torch from the cauldron. It was a simple ceremony - and images of the moment were quickly relayed around the world. Also under the glare of the world's media were London 2012 chairman Sebastian Coe and London Mayor Boris Johnson.
Waiting for the flame in front of a tribune dressed in LOCOG torch relay banners bearing the slogan "Moment to Shine" was deputy prime minister Nick Clegg and LOCOG chief executive Paul Deighton. Deputy London 2012 chair Keith Mills, culture secretary Jeremy Hunt, British Olympic Association CEO Andy Hunt, shadow Olympics minister Tessa Jowell and LOCOG board member Jonathan Edwards were also among the dignatories.
While Prince Anne, IOC member from Great Britain, went walkabout, Coe, Beckham and Johnson went in front of the TV cameras to appear before the nation on "The One Show". Beckham talked in glowing terms about the benefits of the torch relay in raising the profile of the Olympics. After jetting into Athens for a brief appearance at the torch handover ceremony and then to England on Friday, he returns to the U.S on Saturday to play a match for the Los Angeles Galaxy.
Coe was pressed for details about the lighting of the Olympic cauldron at the July 27 opening ceremony; had he seen diagrams or a story board?
"It will be a very British ceremony," he said, smiling and revealing little.
Deighton told Around the Rings he was delighted with the numbers of people who had turned out to catch a glimpse of the Olympic torch ahead of the start of the UK-wide relay on Saturday.
He will be appearing at key points on Day One of the relay, which ends with evening celebrations in the city of Plymouth, and expects a similar reception for the torch. "Crowds will just be everywhere," he said.
Deighton is the face of London 2012 on May 19, as chairman Sebastian Coe is heading to Munich to watch his team Chelsea take on Bayern in the Champions League final at the Allianz Arena.
Other VIPs at the Culdrose event included senior figures from the torch relay's presenting partners Samsung, Coca-Cola and Lloyds TSB, all of whom had traveled from Athens to attend the milestone event in southwest England.
Seok Pil Kim, president and CEO of Samsung Europe, told ATR that the company was "trying to make [the torch relay] successful for the London Olympics. It's a very special moment for Samsung too."
Reported by Mark Bisson
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