Boris unveils Olympic focal points outside the 2012 Park

BORIS Johnson today unveiled plans for how London will welcome visitors for the 2012 Games with events and big screens away from the Olympic Park.

The London Mayor told the Olympic Board he wants four main sites to become a "hive of activity" to match the sporting spectacle at the park in Stratford.

The East End's Victoria Park, the South Bank's Jubilee Gardens, Hyde Park and Potter's Gate beside City Hall will feature concert stages and big screens.

Entry to these sites will be for ticket holders only and organisers hope they will be funded entirely by sponsors, without the need for public money.

Trafalgar Square was rejected due to concerns around access and security. But money will be spent linking Trafalgar Square, Covent Garden and Leicester Square into a huge pedestrian area.

Boris said: "The Olympic and Paralympic Games are such a unique and outstanding opportunity for London and the UK with the benefits far outliving the closing ceremony. We're under no illusion about the mammoth tasks ahead in planning and preparing for the world to come and experience our capital."

The plans also included details of how the city will be dressed with flags, iconic imagery, and colour schemes.

The Cultural Olympiad, a festival of arts to follow the Games, is already being planned with events such as the Create festival in East London hoping to attract similar size crowds as Edinburgh's Fringe festival.