Hundreds of Londoners stood in silence as the iconic Piccadilly Circus adverts were switched off as part of a tribute to more than one million servicemen and women who were killed during the First World War.
For one hour, from 6pm on Friday, the billboard's vibrant advertising in central London was replaced by a commemorative film that aimed "to bring home the scale of the conflict 100 years ago".
Boots representing soldiers killed in the conflict marched through the screen as the heart of the West End was bathed in red light.
The film also told eleven personal accounts from the conflict, while a tally at the bottom of the screen will count the number of lives lost during the war.
Created by Westminster City Council in collaboration with TMW Unlimited, it marked the beginning of Remembrance events being held throughout the weekend to commemorate the centenary of the end of WWI.
According to the film's creators, it would take more than 10 days and 19 hours for all of those who lost their lives to march through the billboard.
Ahead of the screening, Westminster’s Armed Forces Champion, Councillor Rachael Robathan said: “It is hard to imagine how anyone could cope in the circumstances facing the young men and women caught up in World War One.
“100 years on it remains truly humbling to hear the stories of bravery and resilience that we remember today.
“The thousands of marching feet combined with the very personal stories featured in this poignant film conveys the scale of the tragedy.
"Over the last four years people across the city, in our schools, archives, libraries and community groups, have taken part in touching tributes.
"This screening is a fitting end to Armistice centenary events in Westminster.”
Michael Richards, The Unlimited Group’s MD said: “We are very proud to collaborate with Westminster Council to commemorate such a poignant moment in time.
"We hope this unique film, from our Agency TMW Unlimited, will remind us all of the incredible and selfless bravery that people showed during such a nightmare time.
"We must never forget the sacrifices made.”
A Welsh Guards bugler will bring proceedings to a close a rendition of the Last Post at the end of the screening followed by two minute silence mirroring a similar event at the start of 100 year anniversary commemorations in in 2014.
