The Winter Olympics in Beijing may not have any spectators because of Covid, nor any natural snow, but it certainly has an enormous LED screen.

Beijing is used to putting on a spectacular opening ceremony, having done so for the 2008 summer games, but this time, what may be the largest LED screen in the world took centre stage.

The 125,000 sq ft HD screen at the Bird’s Nest Stadium – the main venue of the 2008 games – was used to project the appearance of an icy surface in the middle of the arena.

This was followed by a 3,000-strong crowd of performers – all rigorously tested to maintain the ‘bubble’ in a country still following a zero-Covid strategy – who themselves made use of LED technology with glowing green light sticks to symbolise the start of spring. That may seem ironic for the winter games, but it comes after the Chinese New Year of a few days ago.

While Covid meant the tally of performers was inevitably smaller than in 2008, memories of the light show and pyrotechnics on display then meant there was bound to be something extraordinary on display. This is a country with the world’s biggest population, but it likes to show off in other ways too. 

The sheer size of the LED screen may be an expression of Chinese confidence and boldness as it continues to assert its often controversial role in the world, all in contrast to London 2012 with its historical themes and cultural quirks from James Bond to Mr Bean.

It remains to be seen if anything remotely as large will be seen in the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham this summer, where English eccentricity may again be to the fore, but the capacity of a large LED screen to play its part in putting on a truly spectacular show and making a big statement can scarcely have been more evident.