Casemates set to count out 2025 and ring in the New Year 

The Rock is set to count out 2025 and welcome the New Year with hours of entertainment in Casemates today. 

The festivities will begin with an 80’s Christmas Party as the first of Johnny Harper’s DJ sets starts at 2pm. 

An hour later well-known local band Jetstream will take to the stage. Johnny Harper will be back on the decks again at 4.30pm until 6pm.  

There will be a reprieve of performances until 10.30pm when No Limits Entertainment (NLE) DJ Set kicks off the second round of celebrations.  

That will be followed by Nathan Payas and Michael Crome at 11.15pm until the all important countdown at 11.50pm.  

On the stroke of midnight, following the well-rehearsed countdown by presenters James Neish and Miss Gibraltar Julia Horne, there will be confetti and fireworks which are expected to last ten minutes.  

The proceedings will also be live on GBC TV as from 11:30pm.  

At 12.10am New Year’s Collective will take to the stage followed by NLE DJ Set at 2am who will keep the party going until 3.30am.  

Walking through Casemates this week you can see that preparations are well underway for this year’s eagerly awaited New Year's Eve festivities.  

Presenters Mr Neish and Ms Horne have promised a night of family-friendly entertainment complete with DJs, live performances, and the cherished countdown to midnight. 

Mr Neish, a familiar face at the event, shared with the Chronicle his excitement and the sense of responsibility that comes with marking such an important communal moment. 

 “It feels like being part of everybody's family at the strike of midnight,” he said.  

“That's always really endearing, and just very, very special to me.” 

The final preparations saw both presenters engaged in intensive rehearsals to perfect scripts and develop on-stage chemistry.  

“We rehearse and rehearse and rehearse again. There is no second chance for the countdown, it’s the one thing we always have to get right,” Mr Neish explained. 

“It’s not a difficult show to do, but it comes with intense pressure at that moment leading up to midnight.” 

He also noted what the night means to him.  

“It’s always exciting, and it’s always nerve-wracking, because it’s a really, really special moment,” he said.  

“I don’t underestimate the importance of the night and how grateful we are and how important it is for people to just tune in and allow you into their lives at what is a very important moment for everybody.” 

For Ms Horne, this will be her first time on the New Year stage after years of watching the broadcast from home.  

“I'm a little bit nervous, I can't lie, but I'm really looking forward to this,” she told the Chronicle.  

“I never thought that it would one day be me, but here we are,” she said, adding her family set to support her both in person in Casemates and from home. 

The event will once again draw a diverse audience, from local families to tourists who find themselves swept up in the celebrations at Casemates.  

“It’s not only locals. It’s tourists, foreigners who are just staying in Gibraltar and stumbled across the stage, and all of a sudden they walk into this free party, which is absolutely great,” Mr Neish said.  

“For Julia and me, it’s also a way to represent what Gibraltar has to offer.” 

Organisers are mindful of those who can’t attend in person, including residents at Mount Alvernia and Calpe House, and are keen to extend festive greetings to everyone watching from home on GBC.  

“They’re all within our thoughts, and we always have sort of special messages for them,” said Mr Neish.