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A FAMOUS shopping street will go car-free today as it transforms into a festive mile.

Visitors can enjoy an array of Christmas activities, inclusdung live music from musicians and choirs as well as arts and crafts and even a party bus.

Shoppers can enjoy a seven car-free hours on London’s Regent Street as it closes from 2pm until 9pm today.

Without the hassle of dodging cars and weaving crowded pavements, you can shop and even dance on a party bus well into the evening.

Festive mile

The stretch of street will turn into a winter wonderland, with fun activities available along the festive mile.

Parked up on Regent Street will be three vintage red buses with a different surprise in each.

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In one you can find The Spirit of Christmas Selfie Station where there will be an “Instagrammable” selfie spot on the top deck with the backdrop of the iconic angel light displays.

And on another vintage bus there is a disco from “Choose Love” where you can enjoy a boogie under flashing lights.

There will also be live music from choirs and DJs who bring the festive cheer.

And visitors can check out The Gift Wrap and Festive Crafts Bus where you’ll find everything from wreath making to children’s Christmas crafting.

Or if you’ve bought some gifts from the shops along Regent Street, take them onto the bus and take advantage of the free wrapping station.

Just show the receipt from a Regent Street or St James’s store and leave with a perfectly wrapped present.

This is the first time since 2020 that the busy shopping street has closed for a Christmas shopping afternoon.

On-site offers

Some shops are even holding special offers too, including NEOM where you can have a go on the spin-to-win wheel.

If you land on the right spot, you’ll get your hands on some goodies and enjoy a complimentary travel candle (with any £20 purchase).

And Marc Jacobs are having an exclusive in their shop with a DJ set and drinks.

66°North are giving out drinks to customers and if you choose to dine at Ziggy Green – the Soho Saint Brass Band will be playing in the background.

Here’s what you’ll find at Winter Wonderland this year…

Winter Wonderland in London – which was recently named the UK’s best Christmas market – will launch on November 14 and run for six weeks until January 1.

Santa Land has been revamped this year with a new interactive Elves Workshop experience.

Visitors can play puzzles, spin giant cogs and help the elves bring Santa’s toys to life. Families can also uncover hidden treasures and get Santa’s autograph.

Part of the revamped Santa Land will also be a free Santa’s Grotto experience.

Visitors will head off on a journey through the new Elves Workshop and see Mrs Claus before meeting the big man himself.

Completely new for this year is the world’s first street food market just for kids.

Known as Jingle Bell Bistro, inside elves have collected the top foodie finds from across the globe for kids to enjoy.

Whilst the Magical Ice Kingdom is nothing new, it will have a new theme this year – ‘A Mystical, Mythical Fantasy World’.

Visitors will be able to adventure through the Four Realms of Earth, Fire, Air and Water, which will all be made from 500 tonnes of snow and ice by sculptors from the UK and Belgium.

The Magical Ice Kingdom is rather chilly at -10C and it is one of Europe‘s largest ice attractions.

Over in the much-loved Bavarian Village – where there is usually live music, traditional German food and mulled wine – there will be a new Apres-Ski themed village.

Here visitors will be able to grab a festive-themed drink, bratwursts and enjoy live DJ sets.

The iconic Luminarie light arches were introduced to Winter Wonderland back in 2015, but this year will feature a new extension with an additional 50,260 LED bulbs.

It will also feature a market selling unique and traditional festive gifts.

This year the award-winning Cirque Berserk will return with their “most thrilling exclusive show yet” called Ignite.

It will include a number of daredevil performers, including motorbike stunts and fire acts.

Or head over to Bentley’s where there will be Christmas carols on the terrace which you can listen to while sipping on mulled wine or having oysters – which you can also take away.

For Christmas, The Choose love Shop will return to Regent Street as part of the charity’s 10^th birthday.

Free gift wrapping will also be available in-store on December 11, 14, 20 – all that’s needed is a valid receipt from a shop in Regent Street or St James’s.

If you’re not familiar with London, Regent Street is stretch of road in the West End that runs between Piccadilly Circus and St James’s Park.

And if you’re in the area, you can swing by Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park for more festive fun.

The sudden unconstitutional change of government in the Portuguese-speaking Guinea-Bissau, in late November 2025, was condemned in uncertain terms by the African Union and regional economic blocs, the West African Elders Forum, and individual heads of state across Africa. The military removed Umaro Sissoco Embaló, who was elected president in 2019. He became the first president to be elected without the backing of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC) and ultimately took office in February 2020.

The arguments were based on the fact that the military takeover of power was not in accordance with normative instruments, including the Constitutive Act of the African Union (2000), the Lomé Declaration on Unconstitutional Changes of Government (2000), the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance (2007), and the Ezulwini Framework (2009).

What happened in Guinea-Bissau underlines how fragile political systems remain in the majority of African countries and how quickly authority can be contested in environments where trust in government is thin. Whether executed by the military or engineered through constitutional manipulation, coups—of any form—signal the same root failure: leadership that loses legitimacy by failing to govern effectively. For decades some experts have believed in such trends.

Political Differences

Throughout his administration, opposition figures have seriously criticized Umaro Embaló’s rule as increasingly authoritarian; parliaments that were dominated by the opposition were dissolved twice during his presidency, once in 2022 and another in 2023. In May 2022, Umaro Embaló dissolved Guinea-Bissau’s parliament, citing “persistent and unresolvable differences” with parliament. For the second time, in December 2023, Umaro Embaló dissolved parliament, citing allegations of an attempted coup d’état.

Following another coup attempt in which the opposition criticized Umaro Embaló for attempting to carry out a constitutional coup and consolidate power, just before the November elections. At the same time, disputes arose over his term, as opposition groups said his term expired on 27 February 2025. He had continued to hold the presidency following the legal expiry of his term. Earlier, Umaro Embaló announced that he would not seek a second term in the upcoming presidential elections scheduled for November 2025. As a Bissau-Guinean politician and former military officer, he served as the sixth president of Guinea-Bissau from 2020 until he was deposed in a coup d’état in 2025. Currently, he conveniently sought political exile in Dakar, Senegal.

Economic Weaknesses

Guinea-Bissau’s population was 2.1 million in 2023. With its arable land and water surfaces, agriculture is the backbone of the country. The economy depends mainly on agriculture; fish, cashew nuts, and groundnuts are its major exports. Guinea-Bissau, under Umaro Embaló, has a substantial part of the economic and social infrastructure in ruins, with rising youth unemployment and widespread poverty. An estimated 80% of the population lives in abject poverty.

After several years of economic downturn, Guinea-Bissau has started to show some economic advances with a package of an IMF-backed structural reform program backed by investable loans. But, during the past few years, Umaro Embaló shifted its policy, with hopes of securing economic support from China and Russia, as he forged unwavering solidarity and friendship within the context of a multipolar world.

Guinea-Bissau has experienced numerous coups and coup attempts since gaining independence from Portugal in 1974. Uganda-based security analyst Freddie David Egesa attributes Umaro Embaló’s overthrow to ‘perennial weaknesses in institutions’ as well as partisan politics and insensitivity towards development. It is, however, expected that the military may be able to consolidate power over the next year by appointing favorable members to strategic positions such as the defense, foreign, and finance ministries.

Future Pathway

As Guinea-Bissau under the newly constituted governance structure enters 2026, the country will still be burdened by contradictions of combining state administration with economic development. The main concern is to exercise the utmost restraint in order to prevent any further deterioration of the situation. 

It is imperative to underline that, while the African Union and ECOWAS insist on respecting and upholding a constitutional order, the new government has to prioritize multilateral policy, indiscriminately search for foreign investors to mechanize agriculture to ensure food security, further focus on basic industrializing of the economy, and create, to some degree, employment for the youth. 

At least, in line with its mandate, it’s necessary to empower the working force while having readiness for those who work in close coordination with ECOWAS and other key international partners to support internal stability and solidarity with the people of Guinea-Bissau during this critical period. 

Nonetheless, the country holds a young, vibrant population and untapped natural resources, which are critical for undertaking systematic development and for improving living standards. Yet decades after its independence, and like many other African countries, the gap between potential and reality still remains wide. While reshaping the local politics and national economics, there are complex challenges to take cognizance of and address in totality. Analysis indicates that, in addition to the above, the best pathway under present circumstances could be strengthening both regional and international partnerships for economic recovery in Guinea-Bissau.