Duran Duran, Snow Patrol, Stereophonics and Paolo Nutini marked the opening of the London Olympics with a massive live show in Hyde Park.

The show coincided with the huge East London Olympics ceremony - and officials granted the show a special late night license after Bruce Springsteen's recent show was ended abruptly when he ran over the strict curfew.

Each artist performing represented a country from the UK, with Nutini opening the show while performing under a Scottish flag. Duran Duran frontman Simon Le Bon wore a Union Jack-style jacket - the highlight of the band's set being their track 'The Reflex', performed as the Red Arrows flew overhead.

Welsh stars the Stereophonics later performed ahead of headliners Snow Patrol, who received the biggest cheer of the night when they performed their hit 'Chasing Cars' as footage of Olympic athletes was shown on huge screens in the park.

The gig was granted a special late night license for the one-off show, with licensing chairman of Westminster council Audrey Lewis telling the BBC: “The opening night of the Olympics is clearly an exceptional evening and the Hyde Park show on Friday is timed to run around the opening ceremony of the Olympics.

“It is not a case of a straightforward concert night at Hyde Park. We took that into consideration when granting the application. It is clearly different from commercial shows that run throughout other parts of the year.”

Courtesy Gigwise [click for photos]