:00:32. > :00:40.Hello. Welcome to the Panathenaic Stadium. One week ago the Olympic
:00:40. > :00:44.flame was it will by the sun's rays in Ancient Olympia. Now we see it.
:00:44. > :00:49.This is the first time the crowd in this stadium in Athens has seen the
:00:49. > :00:56.flame. It is brought in by a Greek champion. There'll be a short relay
:00:56. > :01:01.here of the Olympic flame. It comes into what is known as the Marble
:01:01. > :01:06.Stadium. It is here the handover to London 2012 takes place. In other
:01:06. > :01:11.words, this is it. Within half an hour or so, less than that even,
:01:11. > :01:15.the British will be custodians of the greatest show on Earth. The
:01:15. > :01:20.Princess Royal is here. The... There we are. She stands by the
:01:20. > :01:23.President, who of course has been involved, even today in the
:01:23. > :01:29.political and economic turmoil of this country. This is a moment when
:01:29. > :01:34.all that goes on to the back burner. Now they savour this moment, where
:01:34. > :01:40.after a decade of struggling to get the Games it is handed to London
:01:40. > :01:50.2012. Not yet. We have this relay and some speeches first. Let's
:01:50. > :02:19.
:02:19. > :02:23.He's a world champion in gymnastics. They are all Greek heroes.
:02:23. > :02:30.The rain has just stopped! We've had rain the last three hours. It
:02:30. > :02:40.has just stopped. We've got several stages of this
:02:40. > :02:40.
:02:40. > :02:45.relay. It goes around the stadium before they light the could dron.
:02:45. > :02:50.-- couldron. The Princess Royal there. She will be the British
:02:50. > :02:54.contact who receives the flame. Not yet, she is the President of the
:02:54. > :03:01.British Olympic Association. When she gets it, it is the moment
:03:01. > :03:07.London 2012 have the Olympics. It is known as the Marble Stadium. It
:03:07. > :03:13.was recreated in 1986. There were ancient games on this site. It is a
:03:13. > :03:19.wonderful joining of ancient and modern.
:03:19. > :03:22.James Pearce is with me. He is one of the very few journalists who has
:03:22. > :03:32.been following this for the past decade. It is when Sebastian Coe
:03:32. > :03:43.
:03:43. > :03:48.There we have the Sports Minister, on the right, we have Boris Johnson
:03:48. > :03:52.next to David Beckham, of course. What do you think the London 2012
:03:52. > :03:56.team is thinking now? I think a great deal of excitement, but also
:03:56. > :04:02.a great deal of relief that this day has finally come, so many years
:04:02. > :04:08.of work. Seven years, almost now since they won in Singapore. Yes, a
:04:08. > :04:12.big shrug from Seb Coe, as you say that. He said this is the moment
:04:12. > :04:18.when the Games come alive. His words this morning "There is no
:04:18. > :04:28.going back now. There is no going back." Tomorrow, this flame will
:04:28. > :05:05.
:05:05. > :05:11.Can you tell us about this moment Phillip? The flame was it will, it
:05:11. > :05:19.was it will by flying through the air on a trapeze. These days they
:05:19. > :05:24.are on firm ground. Athens and the Olympic Games - a marvellous moment.
:05:24. > :05:27.Deborah Hail is with us. She is from LOCOG, the London Organising
:05:27. > :05:30.Committee of the Olympic Games - it is what LOCOG stands for. She is in
:05:30. > :05:36.charge of the torch relay in Britain, which of course kicks off
:05:36. > :05:39.tomorrow. We know that the Greeks have had a
:05:39. > :05:43.very successful week with this torch going around their country,
:05:43. > :05:51.despite the austerity problems. That must be heart-warming for you
:05:51. > :05:56.- I know you want to galvanise public opinion ahead of the British
:05:56. > :06:02.torch relay?. We do. It is about celebrating the communities within
:06:02. > :06:05.the UK. It will travel over 1,000 communities. 8,000 miles, 8,000
:06:05. > :06:12.torch barers. We will get ready to celebrate what we are about, as
:06:12. > :06:15.well as the Games. Not everybody is into the Games. You believe
:06:16. > :06:21.there'll be a shift in public opinion as a result of the relay?
:06:21. > :06:31.We hope so. It is about celebrating individuals, ordinary torch barers
:06:31. > :06:59.
:07:00. > :07:09.as well as communities. Now we go It is getting closer to the British.
:07:10. > :07:18.
:07:18. > :07:28.They are on the left there n the Phillip, why does the Olympic flame
:07:28. > :07:29.
:07:29. > :07:31.matter? It was started in 1934, as a relay from Olympia. It links
:07:31. > :07:37.Ancient Olympia with the modern games.
:07:37. > :07:40.The man who revived the Games said, "Remember the fire you brought from
:07:40. > :07:45.Olympia, because it brings warmth and light to your times." That is
:07:45. > :07:51.what it is doing this year, in uncertain economic times, when we
:07:51. > :07:55.have this light of Olympia, when the light is burning, there is a
:07:55. > :08:02.feeling of hope and that peace will prevail throughout the Olympic
:08:02. > :08:08.Games. We are about to get into what is a
:08:08. > :08:12.very elaborate service around the alter with the couldron on it.
:08:12. > :08:20.Explain the significance of this. These are the three priest teases
:08:20. > :08:26.we saw light the -- priestesses we saw light the flame a week ago. The
:08:26. > :08:34.palace guard stand by the Greek, the Olympic and Union Flags here.
:08:34. > :08:44.They process slowly. There is the high priest yes, she has the torch
:08:44. > :08:44.
:08:44. > :08:53.for -- priestese, she has the torch for London. She is a wonderful
:08:53. > :08:58.performer. We saw her last week giving the hymn. All 24 are
:08:59. > :09:03.involved. There is a measure of how seriously they take it, there are
:09:03. > :09:10.real professionals involved and who regard this as quite a major thing
:09:10. > :09:18.on their CVf you like. There have only been ten who have fulfilled
:09:18. > :09:25.this role since 1936, since a dance teacher first became the high
:09:25. > :09:30.priest yes. Now it has expanded, so you get these 24 for these games of
:09:30. > :09:35.the 30th in London. London is the first city in a summer games to
:09:35. > :09:45.receive the flame from Olympia on two occasions. Now the invitation
:09:45. > :09:48.
:09:48. > :09:53.This was set alight by the sun's rays a week ago. Now it is a
:09:53. > :10:03.struggle. Everybody has their raincoats on.
:10:03. > :10:10.
:10:10. > :10:20.Everybody here is an actor or an It was a Pagan festival and that is
:10:20. > :10:20.
:10:20. > :14:42.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 261 seconds
:14:42. > :14:52.We saw an olive branch exchanged between Greek and London school
:14:52. > :15:06.
:15:06. > :15:10.The President of the Hellenic Olympic Committee and the President
:15:10. > :15:20.of the London Olympic committee, Sebastian Coe, are kindly invited
:15:20. > :15:24.
:15:24. > :15:34.Spyros Capralos is a very interesting man. He talks about
:15:34. > :15:41.
:15:41. > :15:51.austerity and does not shy away Your Royal Highness, President of
:15:51. > :15:56.
:15:56. > :16:06.the organising committee, London 2012. He is going to say the same
:16:06. > :16:22.
:16:22. > :16:30.It is so interesting how he gave a glossy brochure about going to
:16:30. > :16:35.London 2012. It is peppered with references to austerity. The German
:16:35. > :16:44.car manufacturer is paying for a lot of what we are seeing today.
:16:44. > :16:49.This is where it all began. There is a challenge for this man to get
:16:49. > :16:55.a team in London from Greece. There is no funding from the Greek
:16:55. > :17:00.government. Most of the money is being raised abroad. All the public
:17:01. > :17:06.swimming pools in Athens have had their heating turned off. The
:17:06. > :17:16.Hellenic committee is heating one pork so the swimmers can train in
:17:16. > :17:19.
:17:19. > :17:25.the run-up for the Games. -- pool. I noticed there was a plea to the
:17:25. > :17:30.state that they still had to finance sport. They are the first
:17:30. > :17:34.team into the stadium, in London. It is unthinkable to have an
:17:34. > :17:40.Olympics without the team from Greece. Other countries are happy
:17:40. > :17:46.to step in and do what they can to help. Looking at the size of the
:17:46. > :17:52.crowd, it has been a good size. There were not many people on the
:17:52. > :17:57.streets today. It is not a priority right now. He was saying it is a
:17:58. > :18:07.release for people, to have one day - I was going to say it in the
:18:08. > :18:08.
:18:08. > :18:15.sunshine - but in the rain, as it turns out. We thought there would
:18:15. > :18:23.be fewer people here. Three hours beforehand, it was throwing it down
:18:23. > :18:33.with rain and wild wind. On marble seats in the open air, not the most
:18:33. > :18:41.
:18:41. > :18:48.comfortable setting. People have Addressed by the President of the
:18:48. > :18:52.organising committee, Lord Sebastian Coe. Distinguished guests,
:18:53. > :18:57.on behalf of the people of the United Kingdom, I would like to
:18:57. > :19:03.express my gratitude to the people of Greece - particularly for laying
:19:03. > :19:08.on the British weather. And to Spyros Capralos and the Hellenic
:19:08. > :19:13.Olympic Committee. My connection to this great city stretches back over
:19:13. > :19:18.three decades to my first international competition here in
:19:18. > :19:24.1975. Thank you for the warm hospitality, the welcome that you
:19:24. > :19:28.and your country have extended to us, to our torch, and to everyone
:19:29. > :19:34.that has been involved in the London 2012 torch relay since we
:19:34. > :19:40.lit the flame a week ago in a limp here. For the past eight days, our
:19:40. > :19:43.two countries had connected in a very special way. In the spirit of
:19:43. > :19:49.peace and friendship of the flame and the values of this great
:19:49. > :19:52.Olympic movement. Today's handover it is an occasion of international
:19:52. > :19:57.significance and importance. Like the Olympic and Paralympic Games,
:19:57. > :20:02.the flame belongs to the world, and the arrival of the flame in the
:20:02. > :20:07.host nation is a resounding and clarion call to the best athletes
:20:07. > :20:11.of their generation in more than 200 Nations and territories,
:20:11. > :20:16.preparing to gather for the London 2012 Games. Millions of people
:20:16. > :20:22.across the UK are getting ready to do the best work of their lives to
:20:22. > :20:28.welcome you. Villages, towns and cities across the United Kingdom
:20:28. > :20:32.had been planning to welcome the blame for a number of years. That
:20:32. > :20:41.is why his handover ceremony is an event of great national importance
:20:41. > :20:46.to them and us. -- this handover ceremony. On its journey, the story
:20:46. > :20:51.of the flame will be about those who carry it. Their stories will
:20:51. > :20:56.inspire. Stories of everyday people doing extraordinary things, all too
:20:56. > :21:04.often going unheralded. On Saturday, Ben Ainslie will start the relay
:21:04. > :21:09.and pass the flame to and 18-year- old from St Ives, who has
:21:09. > :21:14.represented Great Britain four times as a member of the junior
:21:14. > :21:19.British surf team. She will become the first woman to represent
:21:19. > :21:23.Britain for surfing and snowboarding for her country. The
:21:23. > :21:31.large proportion of Torch bearers will be under 25. They will tell
:21:31. > :21:36.the story of a modern and confident United Kingdom. It will inspire us
:21:36. > :21:41.as we unite and line the streets to celebrate the flame. It will travel
:21:41. > :21:46.through Cornwall in the far south- west of England, through Wales,
:21:46. > :21:51.Scotland and Northern Ireland. It will visit every region and every
:21:51. > :21:57.nation, shining a light on the people and places of the United
:21:57. > :22:01.Kingdom. The flame will also visit Dublin in Ireland. Dubliners will
:22:02. > :22:07.show us how to celebrate the flame and its message of peace, goodwill
:22:07. > :22:12.and friendship. Thank you to at presenting partners, who make the
:22:12. > :22:17.torch relay possible, and who will help us to take the flame to within
:22:17. > :22:22.10 miles of 95% of the UK population. It's the Olympic Games
:22:22. > :22:26.is about celebrating the best athletes in the world, the Olympic
:22:26. > :22:30.spirit is about celebrating the best in ourselves and our
:22:30. > :22:35.neighbourhoods. We have found the very best in our torch bearers.
:22:35. > :22:41.Like the Olympic athletes, they will inspire a generation, as we
:22:41. > :22:49.prepare to bring the flame to the UK. We are reminded of our
:22:49. > :22:53.responsibility, like that of our predecessors in 1908 and 1948. To
:22:53. > :22:57.unite the world in a celebration of achievement and inspiration in
:22:57. > :23:03.challenging times. Eight games that will inspire the next generation to
:23:03. > :23:09.choose sport. This summer, we welcome the world to London. We
:23:09. > :23:15.look forward to the incredible events that will unfold. Join us in
:23:15. > :23:25.a sporting celebration that will capture the imagination of the
:23:25. > :23:27.
:23:27. > :23:37.world. Lighting of the torch by the high
:23:37. > :23:43.priestess. Slightly misled you on Spyros Capralos giving that in
:23:43. > :23:53.English as well. They said they were handing the flame over with
:23:53. > :23:56.
:23:56. > :24:03.feelings of sincere appreciation Handing over of the Olympic flame
:24:03. > :24:08.by the high priestess to the President of the Hellenic Olympic
:24:08. > :24:18.Committee, Spyros Capralos. He has the responsibility to physically
:24:18. > :24:28.
:24:28. > :24:34.hand this over to London 2012, to Handing over of the Olympic flame
:24:34. > :24:44.to her Royal Highness, Princess Anne, of the United Kingdom, by the
:24:44. > :24:55.
:24:55. > :25:03.President of the Hellenic Olympic Lighting of the Olympic flame.
:25:03. > :25:08.is it. It really is in the hands of London 2012. James Pearce, at
:25:08. > :25:17.Olympic Correspondent, you have been following the torch plans very
:25:17. > :25:25.closely. The lamps, four stand buys? There are four instances of
:25:25. > :25:35.the flames. They are like a miner's lamp. It keeps the flame safe and
:25:35. > :25:36.
:25:36. > :25:43.enables us to fly it back to the UK, safely on board the BA2012.
:25:43. > :25:47.Sebastian Coe is looking a bit concerned. They have been tested on
:25:47. > :25:54.the top of Mount Snowdon. In conditions up to 30 miles an hour.
:25:54. > :26:04.We have done all sorts of tests on the flame. We are very proud of our
:26:04. > :26:20.
:26:20. > :26:25.Princess Anne of the United Kingdom, carrying the Olympic flame. She is
:26:25. > :26:29.accompanied by the minister also bought and Mr Hugh Robertson, the
:26:29. > :26:35.President of the organising committee of the London 2012
:26:36. > :26:39.Olympic Games, Lord Sebastian Coe, the Mayor of London, Mr Boris
:26:39. > :26:49.Johnson, said David Beckham, and Her Majesty's ambassador to the
:26:49. > :26:56.
:26:56. > :27:01.Hellenic Republic, Mr David You can almost sense the burden of
:27:01. > :27:05.responsibility on the shoulders of Sebastian Coe. I like the way that
:27:05. > :27:11.David Beckham has been given an knighthood by the announcer. Maybe
:27:11. > :27:15.something is coming up in the Queen's birthday Honours! The
:27:15. > :27:23.Princess Royal looks so relaxed and genuinely pleased to be there. She
:27:23. > :27:27.was in Singapore for the decision in 2005. She has played such a key
:27:27. > :27:33.role. Lord Cope pay tribute to her this morning, saying she was the
:27:33. > :27:38.unsung hero of the Games. She has been in many wonderful situations
:27:38. > :27:44.in her life, she has travelled the world. There have not been many
:27:44. > :27:48.more proud moments for her than to carry London's Olympic Torch.
:27:48. > :27:56.Anyone who sought David Beckham was here to receive it, that was never
:27:56. > :28:05.the case. -- thought. He will be involved tomorrow when the torch
:28:05. > :28:15.goes on to the plane. Cornwall is excited that he will be coming with
:28:15. > :28:15.
:28:15. > :28:20.a torch from the plane tomorrow. You have many days of anxiety ahead.
:28:20. > :28:26.We have a well trained security team, who know how to look after
:28:26. > :28:31.the flame. I'm sure we will be fine. If it is now in the hands of London
:28:31. > :28:39.2012. So different from 1948 when it came into Dover one night before
:28:39. > :28:45.the opening ceremony and it went out on to David Keith a few times.
:28:45. > :28:51.-- on to the quay in Dover. knows what the athletes are going
:28:51. > :28:57.through. These athletes now know that the torch is coming. It is 70
:28:57. > :29:01.days to go. When it gets to Lands End, but the torch will be in
:29:01. > :29:04.Britain and it will pass through all our towns and cities. It will
:29:04. > :29:11.be very special because the light of the Olympia is coming to the
:29:11. > :29:17.United Kingdom. On that note, it starts in Cornwall. It starts in
:29:18. > :29:26.Land's End. Sebastian Coates, in his speech, was picking up your
:29:26. > :29:33.torch relay. -- Sebastian Coates. We are excited. Tomorrow will be a
:29:33. > :29:37.marvellous day. We land at 7:27pm. The plane will be taken off board
:29:37. > :29:47.and the court and will be lit to signify its true arrival in the
:29:47. > :29:51.
:29:51. > :29:57.United Kingdom and Ben we will be off. -- the cauldron. The route
:29:57. > :30:03.planning has taken many years. We will be within a ten-mile radius of
:30:03. > :30:10.95% of the population. There is quite a bit of excitement where it
:30:10. > :30:16.starts in Land's End. We are going to al four corners of the UK car
:30:16. > :30:21.Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles. We are going over the border,
:30:21. > :30:27.into Dublin. We are going into Wales and all parts of the UK.
:30:27. > :30:33.you worried about the security of it? We remember Beijing. They had
:30:33. > :30:40.many reasons to be worried about protesters disrupting the protests
:30:40. > :30:45.-- process. Our security team have been training with as for a few
:30:45. > :30:49.years. It is about celebrating communities. It is about
:30:49. > :30:53.celebrating extraordinary ordinary people, who will be carrying the
:30:53. > :31:03.flame. We hope people will not protest and spoil someone's moment
:31:03. > :31:04.
:31:04. > :31:08.It is remarkable to think this President today was involved in the
:31:08. > :31:14.apointment of a judge to act as the caretaker Government. New elections
:31:14. > :31:18.will be held, of course. It is not a good backdrop for this ceremony,
:31:18. > :31:24.but the Greeks have made it very clear that it will not stand in the
:31:24. > :31:34.way of this tradition. Even though they needed private, commercial
:31:34. > :31:34.
:31:34. > :32:17.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 261 seconds
:32:17. > :32:24.sponsorship for this ceremony to So Phillip Barker, an expert on
:32:24. > :32:29.these ceremonies - what do we have to look forward to? The Greeks will
:32:29. > :32:33.do this as a send-off to their Olympic team. As we know, the
:32:34. > :32:41.Greeks have such a special role in the Olympic movement. Since 1928,
:32:41. > :32:46.they have been the nation that leads the opening ceremony parade.
:32:46. > :32:51.They will be the first nation into the stadium in London.
:32:51. > :32:58.There are some of the great champions of Greece.
:32:58. > :33:03.The man who it will the torch in Athens in 2004 - the wind surfing
:33:03. > :33:12.world champion and Olympic champion. These great champions getting a
:33:13. > :33:18.great reception. They did not win a gold medal in Beijing. In this
:33:18. > :33:24.stadium in 1986 the marathon was won - that is something that the
:33:24. > :33:29.Greeks have always held so close to their heart. Their great tradition.
:33:29. > :33:33.You talk about shake peers and the British, the Olympic games is so
:33:33. > :33:40.very important for the Greeks. The Presidential guard, taking their
:33:40. > :33:48.leave of the proceedings. For the Greeks, the 1986 Olympics, when the
:33:48. > :33:54.little shepherd not too far from here, about five kilometres away
:33:54. > :33:59.from here, won the race, the marathon. He became a hero for life.
:33:59. > :34:06.All the local shops contributed some money and made sure that he
:34:06. > :34:16.was able to live forever. He appeared in the Greek team in 1936
:34:16. > :34:17.
:34:17. > :34:20.for the first torch relay. James, of course Paula Radcliffe was meant
:34:20. > :34:25.to finish in this stadium. thought it would be the time she
:34:25. > :34:29.got the gold medal. Sadly, but famously she never made it to the
:34:29. > :34:36.stadium. Speaking earlier to the President
:34:36. > :34:45.of the Hellenic Olympic Committee, who we heard making a speech next
:34:45. > :34:48.to Seb Coe, it is difficult what he admits to getting the Greek team to
:34:48. > :34:52.2012 because of the Greek Government problems? If you are a
:34:52. > :34:56.torchbearer in the UK, the chances are you have to pay �190 for your
:34:56. > :35:01.torch. If you are a Greek torchbearer the
:35:01. > :35:06.torches are all free. That is because LOCOG have given them for
:35:06. > :35:10.free. There is no money here to pay for anything. Everything is a gift.
:35:11. > :35:13.There is so much goodwill towards the Greek people, because the
:35:13. > :35:23.Olympic movement is so important to them and they are so important to
:35:23. > :35:27.
:35:27. > :35:31.the Olympic moment. I think this torch -- movement.
:35:31. > :35:34.Many Londoners, two-thirds of the tickets have been sold to people in
:35:34. > :35:38.the south-east of England. This is the chance to go to Northern
:35:38. > :35:42.Ireland, Scotland, Manchester, Newcastle, to try and encourage
:35:42. > :35:45.people to get behind the Games. We should not underestimate that
:35:45. > :35:49.challenge. People have not been able to get the tickets they wanted
:35:50. > :35:55.to get. People think the Games are very expensive. There is a big PR
:35:56. > :36:01.battle to be won over the next 70 days. We will try and get Boris
:36:01. > :36:05.Johnson up into our position on the terrace. It is a logistical
:36:05. > :36:15.nightmare, for obvious reasons. Perhaps also Sports Ministers. We
:36:15. > :36:40.
:36:40. > :36:45.will put that to them if they make So Deborah, we have the torch now
:36:45. > :36:50.which will go to the ambassador's residence. It will stay in his
:36:50. > :36:54.garden. It is staying in the garden for the duration of the reception.
:36:54. > :37:01.Then it is staying overnight in the ambassador's residence. Tomorrow?
:37:01. > :37:08.We will take it to the airport. We will place it on BA2012. It will
:37:08. > :37:15.fly tomorrow afternoon, Greek time, then we will fly back to the UK. We
:37:15. > :37:19.arrive about 7pm. That will signal the start of the relay. It the
:37:19. > :37:27.official arrival. The torch relay starts proper from land's end on
:37:27. > :37:31.Saturday morning. We -- Land's End on Saturday morning. We are having
:37:31. > :37:37.a bit of a fight on our terrace, which we will try and cope with, as
:37:37. > :37:42.well as a lot of noise. Hugh Robertson, first, I have the two of
:37:42. > :37:46.you together, but you are the sports and specifically Olympics
:37:46. > :37:50.Minister. Are you on ticket allocation and on the way London
:37:50. > :37:56.2012 is organised - are you fully satisfied with it all? Yes, is the
:37:56. > :37:59.simple answer to it. When you talk about allocation, the controversy
:37:59. > :38:02.has been that not enough people feel they can get tickets F you
:38:02. > :38:09.feel they can get tickets F you have many more people applying for
:38:09. > :38:14.D tickets than you have tickets and higher proportion went on sale, 24
:38:14. > :38:18.million people applied for 6.5 million tickets, you will have
:38:18. > :38:21.disappointed people. After this weekend all those who have applied
:38:21. > :38:26.three times should now have been successful. I hope that is a
:38:26. > :38:30.process that will continue over the next few months. Don't forget,
:38:30. > :38:36.there are about 125,000 free tickets going to kids in London. We
:38:36. > :38:41.have done ul we can to make tickets a-- all we can to make tickets
:38:41. > :38:45.available. We have talked about the torch relay and how it will build
:38:45. > :38:51.up the public mood. There is an issue for London, in that some
:38:51. > :38:56.people feel alienated because there is so much VIP treatment - lanes
:38:56. > :39:01.named after the limousines. I think the amazing thing is how positive
:39:01. > :39:05.people remain towards the Olympics four years after Beijing. I think
:39:05. > :39:15.that feeling will build. The key test - obviously people are anxious
:39:15. > :39:15.
:39:15. > :39:22.- but the key test will be whether we lay on Great Games. That was a
:39:22. > :39:29.fantastic ceremony by the Greeks. It was wonderful. It went off like
:39:29. > :39:34.clock work. You love your Greek classics? I do. They were all
:39:34. > :39:39.wearing their proper kit. They were looking very, very meaningful and
:39:39. > :39:45.symbolic. I cannot testify to the accuracy of the dances or the music,
:39:45. > :39:55.but it was fantastic. A fantastic setting as well - this stadium?
:39:55. > :39:57.
:39:57. > :40:02.This was the ancient site of the stadium. It was renewed in 1986. It
:40:02. > :40:11.was a mad English man from Shropshire who reinspired the
:40:11. > :40:18.Olympic movement back there in the late 19th century. Hugh Robertson,
:40:18. > :40:23.what is your sense - I mean we have it now - London 2012 has the
:40:23. > :40:27.Olympics - it is in London's hands, we are responsible for it. Do you
:40:27. > :40:31.feel a burden on your shoulders? Yes, of course. There is a huge
:40:31. > :40:35.responsibility on us as a country. With responsibility comes huge
:40:35. > :40:39.opportunity. We really do - I said this earlier on - if you look at
:40:39. > :40:43.the reports we have done extraordinary well to get this
:40:43. > :40:49.project to the position it is in today. If we can finish this off
:40:49. > :40:54.over the next two-and-a-half months, we stand on the cusp of delivering
:40:54. > :40:59.a great Olympics. That is everything that is best about
:40:59. > :41:05.London and Great Britain. It is not a great backdrop, the economic
:41:05. > :41:10.climate and a potential for the dreadful euro crisis. Wrong. Why?
:41:10. > :41:14.We cannot couple our chickens about how well the Games will do. We are
:41:14. > :41:19.hopeful we'll do well. What has happened is we have delivered in
:41:19. > :41:22.terms of infrastructure, in London and other parts of the country. We
:41:22. > :41:26.have delivered a solid legacy already. There are improvements to
:41:26. > :41:35.the transport network which will last for decades. There are new
:41:35. > :41:40.trains which have gone in. New lines have been dug. We will go
:41:40. > :41:45.forward with further improvements. The jobs which have been created
:41:45. > :41:51.would not exist. We are adding 10,000 jobs this month alone for
:41:51. > :41:55.people in the host boroughs A huge amount of homes being built in East
:41:55. > :42:01.London. That would not have happened without the Olympic Games.
:42:01. > :42:06.That ought to be kept in mind. the same point, Hugh Robertson, I
:42:06. > :42:11.mean it is not ideal, that economic backdrop, because you have to
:42:11. > :42:16.wonder if some people would find the Olympics less relevant because
:42:16. > :42:21.they have more to worry about. at the evidence. 24.5 million, we
:42:21. > :42:25.would not have had 24.5 million applications for 6.5 million
:42:25. > :42:31.tickets F they thought it was irrelevant nobody would come and
:42:31. > :42:36.watch it. We would not have 70,000 volunteers. You would not have the
:42:36. > :42:40.slots subscribed for five, six times over. There is huge
:42:40. > :42:45.anticipation of this event. Huge public excitement. You will see
:42:45. > :42:51.that build as the torch goes around the country. It is there - London
:42:51. > :42:58.2012 - it is really happening. days to go. Countdown begins now.
:42:58. > :43:02.You don't feel a burden on your shoulders? Of course we do. It is
:43:03. > :43:12.an amazing privilege. This will not come around again in our lifetimes.
:43:13. > :43:14.
:43:14. > :43:18.Thank you for fighting through the crowds to get to us on our terrace.
:43:18. > :43:22.Well, there we are. The drums have stopped.
:43:22. > :43:30.There is still a lot of noise. You have heard from the politicians
:43:30. > :43:34.there. You have heard from the -- you have heard of the mood and seen
:43:34. > :43:38.the Princess Royal deliver this actual flame. Ten years on from one
:43:38. > :43:44.of our greatest sportsman was putting the bid together. Seven