LONDON (AP) â Sparkling wine, confetti, a midnight countdown: Itâs not New Yearâs Eve, but it might as well be for Englandâs clubbers. After 17 months of empty dance floors, the countryâs nightclubs are reopening with a bang.
Beginning Monday, face masks will no longer be legally required, and with social distancing rules shelved, there will be no more limits on people attending theater performances or big events.
Public health officials fear the celebrations could trigger a major hangover, as more social mixing drives up Britainâs already-surging coronavirus infection rates.
From London to Liverpool, thousands of young people plan to dance the night away at âFreedom Dayâ parties after midnight Sunday, when almost all coronavirus restrictions in England are to be scrapped. Nightclubs, which have been shuttered since March 2020, can finally reopen.