Skies over London were lit up red last night after a barrage of illegal fireworks and flares blazed in the heart of the capital.
In a day dominated by worries of further violent unrest following nation-wide riots, Londoners feared the worst after bangs rang out across the City and the South Bank.
Dramatic footage from just before midnight showed fireworks erupting over London Bridge and the Millennium Bridge, while red flares rained down from above - with some locals comparing the scenes to a shot from WW3 action film Red Dawn.
And Transport for London (TfL) staff working at Blackfriars station, which sits on the bridge of the same name, "couldn't believe their eyes" as the night sky shone red.
Algerian football fans celebrating MC Algiers's "birthday" were behind the flares
X/Wikimedia Commons
Just south of the Thames, in Shakespeare's Globe, theatregoers sought refuge in the basement of the timber-framed premises after a spent firework fell into the structure.
Audience members and performers alike had to shelter under the Elizabethan reconstruction for almost half an hour before an all-clear was sounded, according to the Mail.
Mark Johnson, who was at the production, told the paper: "It was really confusing... It felt like it was near the end of the performance when we saw bright red lights in the sky.
"Most of the audience looked up and we saw fireworks and there was a general sense of confusion. Even the actors and actresses looked up."
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The flares shone in London's night sky on August 7XOn social media, residents expressed their disbelief at the flares shot into the sky - while others noted the same happening in Dublin.
One wrote: "I'm glad someone else saw this. I live all the way over in Croydon and saw 10 or 12 red flares all shoot into the air at the same time nearby the Shard. Thought I was seeing things!"
Another added: "I expect it’s nothing - but a big load of flares just went off Red Dawn style near my flat in Central London."
But the culprits behind the illegal display weren't riotous protesters or "counter-protesters", as seen in other parts of the capital.
It later emerged that the dazzling display - though illegal under the Metropolitan Police Act 1839 - had been lit by Algerian football fans, celebrating their club Mouloudia Club d'Alger's August 7 "birthday".
Mouloudia Club d'Alger - or MC Alger or MCA - hail from Algerian capital Algiers, and their supporters had been revelling in the centre of London alongside Dublin and Algiers itself for their club's foundation date.
One MCA fan told the Times that he and four friends had ventured to Blackfriars Bridge to watch the spectacle - which he claimed was an "unofficial" fan-organised event.
He added: "It was a birthday celebration of our beloved club. Every football team has fans, and we were here to support them. It was timed when the bell struck."