Last night in London, thousands of fans gathered in Olympic Stadium for the Closing Ceremony of the 2012 games. The spectacular show kicked off with fireworks and rolled into a series of performances by British pop stars from the past six decades, including Brian May, The Who, Blur, and George Michael. Even John Lennon and Freddie Mercury made posthumous appearances via video. Brazil gave a preview performance of things to come in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, and Lord Sebastian Coe, chairman of the London Games Organizing Committee, praised the execution of this year's summer games, saying, "When our time came, Britain, we did it right." (Also see our review of the ceremony by Angela Riechers.)
London 2012: The Closing Ceremony
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British prima ballerina Darcey Bussell flies into London's Olympic Stadium on a flaming phoenix during the Closing Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games, on August 12, 2012. #
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Monty Python's Eric Idle enters the stage to perform "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" during the closing ceremony of the 2012 London Olympic Games, on August 12, 2012. #
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Eduardo Paes, mayor of Rio de Janeiro, waves the Olympic flag after receiving it from IOC President Jacques Rogge during the ceremonial handing over of the Olympic flag at the Closing Ceremony, on August 12, 2012. #
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Fans throng around Mo Farah, British gold medalist in the men's 10,000-meter and 5000-meter events, as he attends the Closing Ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics, on August 12, 2012. #
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