At a time when xenophobia and anti-immigrant rhetoric are on the rise across Europe, London is lighting up this Ramadan in a very public way.
While no city catapults itself into Ramadan quite like Cairo does, London, too, will be lighting up this holy month. Ma’idat al-Rahman—traditional tables set up in the streets providing free iftar to the public—may not line its pavements at iftar time, nor streamers flutter across skylines, and lanterns sway at every street corner like in Cairo. Yet in its own way, the UK capital is broadcasting a powerful statement of hope and of belonging to its residents.
For the fourth consecutive year, London’s Ramadan Lights are back in town, promising to be the most spectacular light show yet. Every night this month, from 5 PM to 5 AM, over 30,000 LEDs will illuminate the skies of central London, stretching between Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square.
Fully funded by the Aziz Foundation — a philanthropic organisation supporting British Muslims and founded by Asif Aziz — the UK’s largest public Ramadan celebration will transform Coventry Street into a display of light, colour, and community spirit.
The Ramadan Lights initiative debuted in 2023 as the first aerial Ramadan light display in Western Europe. It has since become a yearly tradition, providing a space in which London’s Muslim community can come together.
This year’s theme, “Share the Lights”, signals a shift from iterations. The focus is not just on coming together, but on coming together across boundaries of faith, religion, and background.
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, who welcomed crowds for the switch-on, echoed this message, calling on Londoners of all faiths — and none — to come together during the holy month. He urged people to break their fasts with friends from different backgrounds, describing this as “an antidote to hatred”.
Alongside the lights, the Aziz Foundation is sponsoring central London’s first interfaith art exhibition. The participating artists come from diverse backgrounds, and their works are inspired by what organisers describe as the universal values of Ramadan — love, generosity, gratitude, patience, empathy, humility, peace, hope, and community.
When Rahima Aziz, trustee of the Aziz Foundation, stepped forward to switch on the lights, she told the crowd: “We share these streets, and we share this city. London is a city for everyone, and Ramadan is for everyone to enjoy.”
London may not mirror Cairo’s lantern-lined streets or its sprawling iftar tables, but it is carving out its own public expression of Ramadan. In a city defined by its diversity, the lights offer a visible acknowledgment of Muslim life at the heart of the capital.
Comments (0)