Sea of green ensures good craic

Thousands of revellers have enjoyed the craic as London took to the streets to celebrate St Patrick's Day.

Decked out in leprechaun costumes and with shamrocks painted on faces, a sea of green defied the wet weather to parade through the capital from Piccadilly to Whitehall.

Londoners and tourists joined citizens of the republic for a festival of traditional Irish music, films and comedy performances in Trafalgar Square.

Mayor of London Boris Johnson said he was delighted to back the parade and festival.

"Amongst the biggest outside Ireland, they are a fantastic celebration for Londoners and visitors alike, as well as being a tribute to the contribution that generations of Irish people have made to life in the capital," he said.

"Not only have the Irish enriched our culture with the craic, it is a community that has brought intelligence and imagination to our professions and created wealth and employment which are vital assets for our city's prosperity."

Angela Sammon, 39, from Westport in County Mayo, was out celebrating for a good cause.

Collecting money for charity Goal, which is delivering aid in Syria, she said the atmosphere was great despite the rain.

"There's a famous song which says everybody is Irish on St Patrick's Day and we're very happy to have every country involved," she said.