Patrick Christys fumes 'we shouldn't have to live like this' as London's Primrose Hill sealed off by 'grotesque' NYE barricades

The London park, renowned for its sweeping vistas across the capital, will remain locked until 6am on New Year's Day.

Local residents have reacted with fury to the barriers now surrounding the green space. Amy McKeown, a member of the Primrose Hill Keepers volunteer group, said she had left the area entirely.

"It is too grotesque to see," she told the Press Association. "The park has never been closed like this. This is completely unprecedented."

Approximately 30,000 people flocked to the hilltop location to welcome 2024, watching the Mayor of London's firework display from the open parkland.

Images of the closed-off area have been shared far and wide on social media on New Year's Eve, with Patrick just one X user keen to express his dismay at the decision.

The People's Channel fan-favourite said alongside an image of the barricades: "Primrose Hill barricaded. Nobody allowed to view the fireworks.

Primrose Hill barricaded. Nobody allowed to view the fireworks. Paris cancelled their New Year’s Eve concert due to security concerns. Bondi Beach display cancelled. Bomb threat in LA from a group demanding a ‘free Palestine’ & decolonisation. We shouldn’t have to live like this. pic.twitter.com/6ovXqvpRIX

— Patrick Christys (@PatrickChristys) December 31, 2025

"Paris cancelled their New Year’s Eve concert due to security concerns. Bondi Beach display cancelled. Bomb threat in LA from a group demanding a ‘free Palestine’ & decolonisation. We shouldn’t have to live like this." (sic)

Inevitably, several of Patrick's followers agreed, with many echoing the presenter's disappointment at the decision.

Meanwhile, the Royal Parks charity, which oversees the site, acknowledged the decision to shut the gates was "not taken lightly."

A spokesperson for the organisation explained that because the gathering was not a formally organised event, there were "limited controls that we can deploy to ensure public safety."

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The charity had previously warned that its capacity to manage crowds of such magnitude would be "severely diminished" following the closure of the Metropolitan Police's Royal Parks Operational Command Unit.

However, the Metropolitan Police has firmly rejected suggestions that the closure was necessitated by the disbandment of its Royal Parks policing team in November.

A force spokesperson stated: "It is not accurate to suggest the decision was necessary as a result of the disbanding of the Royal Parks policing team."

The Met noted that officers from the disbanded unit comprised just 15 of more than 145 personnel deployed to the site during last year's celebrations, a proportion consistent with previous years.

Commander Nick John, leading the force's New Year's Eve operation, echoed the Royal Parks' appeal for people to stay away. "Please make alternative plans. Anyone trying to access the park will find that it is not possible," he said.

Scotland Yard confirmed officers would maintain a presence to "respond to criminality" but stressed that controlling access was not the force's responsibility.

The decision to disband the Royal Parks police unit came as the Met sought to address a £260 million funding shortfall.

The specialist team had previously assisted with serious crime across London's green spaces, including Hyde Park.

Safety concerns surrounding the annual gathering intensified after 16-year-old Harry Pitman was fatally stabbed at the 2023 New Year's Eve fireworks viewing.

Areece Lloyd-Hall, 18, received a minimum 16-year prison sentence in November for the schoolboy's murder.