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On Friday, the Olympic Torch relay will arrive to Southend by at 10.50am and will be in the Borough until 2pm.

SCHEDULE:
• At 10.50am – The Olympic Torch is scheduled to arrive on the A127 at the junction with Rochford Road (by the Bell Pub and Prince Avenue School) where it changes from convoy mode to ‘Torchbearer mode’ for the remainder of the route through Southend.

• The Torch will travel along Prince Avenue to Cuckoo Corner Roundabout, turn right into
Victoria Avenue up to Victoria Gateway when it will turn left onto Queensway.

• At the junction with Chichester Road the Torch bearer will turn right into Chichester Road, and enter the High Street alongside the Victoria Shopping Centre.

• The High Street will be prepared with an appropriate barrier corridor to provide a route for
the Torch to head towards the seafront. Local schools are running a mini Torch Relay over
the next few weeks and will run the High Street Torch route that morning, culminating at
Lloyds TSB, prior to the Olympic Torch arriving.

• Barrier access gaps will be opened and closed along the High Street in this period
to accommodate this event and the Torch itself.

• The Torch should arrive on Marine Parade at 11.40am where it will be welcomed by the specially commissioned ‘Anthem’, sung by choirs from local schools and adult community groups numbering 2,000 in association with Metal Culture.

Anthem is a specially-commissioned piece of music by internationally acclaimed composer, Tolga Kashif, as the Olympic Torch reaches the sea. Kashif, who has collaborated in the past with rock band Queen, has been described by Brian May as ‘someone with a unique view and a new dream’.

Read more about the Anthem project on Metal’s website.

Here are few photos from the dress rehearsal for the Anthem:

And here is a short film about the making of the Anthem:

See the map of roads closure during the Olympic Torch relay by clicking on the thumbnail below:

For more information about the Olympic Torch relay – see London2012 website.