London parties but gales wipe out Edinburgh's New Year carnival.

(From Agence France Presse)

Wrapped up against the bitter cold, around 100,000 revellers descended on central London to welcome in the New Year, overseen by a large police presence amid an ongoing nationwide alert against a potential terrorist strike.

There was disappointment for more than 100,000 party-goers in Scotland's capital Edinburgh as the city's main street party was cancelled at the eleventh hour due to fears over public safety caused by gale force winds and heavy rain.

Gale force winds, rain and snow also forced the postponement of fireworks displays in the northern English cities of Liverpool and Newcastle.

In London, people young and old braved the near-freezing temperatures to descend on Trafalgar Square, nearby Leicester Square, and Parliament Square where Big Ben rang in 2004 at midnight (0000 GMT).

Though police said they had no intelligence about a specific terror threat, fear of an attack -- as well as crowd control -- loomed large in their New Year's Eve planning and 3,000 officers were on duty for the celebrations.

Crowds also converged on the streets around the London Eye, the landmark giant Ferris wheel by the River Thames, where a spectacular three-minute fireworks display lit up the sky to welcome in the New Year.