Sydney Latest City To Welcome 2017 With Biggest Ever Fireworks Display..

Sydney in Australia has become the world's latest city to celebrate the New Year by unleashing its biggest fireworks display in history.More than a million crowded around its famed harbour and opera house to watch firecrackers and flaming starbursts fill the night's sky.

Auckland in New Zealand earlier became the first city in the world to say goodbye to 2016 and welcome in the new year.The city celebrated the start of 2017 with a fireworks and laser display from the Sky Tower at 11am GMT. Tonga and Samoa were among the first places in the world to welcome the new year around 10am GMT.Australia was next, celebrating the new year at 1pm GMT.The show will pay homage to Prince and David Bowie and will be set to a musical medley inspired by the late singers.The seven tons of fireworks launched from barges on the harbour will also include a “Willy Wonka moment” in tribute to the late actor Gene Wilder's most famous role, fireworks co-producer Catherine Flanagan said.

Australia will be followed by Japan at 3pm GMT, where temple bells will echo at midnight as families flock to shrines for the country's biggest holiday.Beijing and Shanghai, China's two largest cities, will pass New Year's Eve at 4pm GMT in a state of security lockdown, according to Chinese media reports citing police.Two years ago, more than 30 people died in a deadly stampede on Shanghai's waterfront, where 300,000 people had gathered to watch a planned light show. This year, a "leap second" is being added to the end of the year to compensate for a slight slowing of the Earth's rotation.2016 is already a leap year.