Olympic Games...Without The Tickets!

Olympic Games...Without The Tickets!

Alamy

Are you one of the millions who have failed to get Olympic tickets?

Don't despair. There are still lots of ways you and your children can enjoy a flavour of London 2012 without them.

Not only are there loads of great venues to watch the action but you can even see some events completely free.

Here is our guide to what is going on around the country...

Soak up the atmosphere at the Olympic Park

Even if you haven't got tickets to the events you'll still be able to buy ground admission tickets for the Olympic Park and watch the action on big screens there. There are even plans afoot to put one on a barge in the River Lea which runs through the park. Look out for the exact plans and prices due to be announced in May.

Fancy it? Log on to London2012.com.

Look out for a live screen near you

The Olympic Park won't be the only place with big screens. There are due to be 22 free live sites with big screens up and running for the tournament across the country. They'll also boast live music and other entertainment during Olympic fortnight. Venues across the capital will include Hyde Park, Trafalgar Square and Victoria Park in Tower Hamlets.

Other locations are:

Belfast: City Hall

Birmingham: Victoria Square

Bradford:Centenary Square

Bristol: Millennium Square

Cardiff: The Hayes

Coventry: Millennium Place

Derby: Market Place

Derry: Waterloo Place

Dover: Market Square

Edinburgh: Festival Square

Leeds: Millennium Square

Leicester:Humberstone Gate

Liverpool: Clayton Square

Manchester: Exchange Square

Middlesborough: Centre Square

Norwich: Chapelfield Shopping Centre

Plymouth: Armada Way

Portsmouth: Guildhall Square

Swansea: Castle Square

Swindon: Wharf Green,

Waltham Forest: Town Square, Walthamstow.

Go to London2012.com/live-sites for more details.

There will be special opening and closing ceremony ticket events in London's Hyde Park too. You can also see what local themed Olympic events are taking place in your neck of the woods at London2012.com/get-involved/whats-on.

Watch for free along the route

Track down the cycling road races being held on July 28and 29. While the start and finish in The Mall is ticketed, it will free to watch along much of the 250km course (men's race) - which runs out into the Surrey countryside.

There's also the chance to watch the Olympic marathons for free. The women's race is on August 5th and the men's is on August 12th and while the start and finish are ticketed, there will be places to watch for nothing along the 26 mile route. There should also be opportunities to catch the triathlon on Saturday 4 and Tuesday 4 August in Hyde Park.

Does Olympic sailing float your boat? Catch the action as it happens off Weymouth at the town's beach where there will be a big screen.

Check out thrilling test events

You might not have tickets to the Olympic Games themselves, but you can still check out some brilliant sporting action in the very venues that will host the sporting stars. Throughout the next few months the Olympic organisers are testing out each venue with ticketed events. And there's everything from hockey to synchronised swimming to enjoy.

For more information about what's on visit Londonpreparesseries.com.

Follow the torch relay

Get fired up by watching the torchbearers carry the iconic Olympic Flame through more than 1,000 cities, towns and villages across the country. Ninety five per cent of the population live within 5 miles of the route which starts in on 19 May at Land's End and ends on July 27 at the opening ceremony.

See a street by street guide at London2012.com/games/olympic-torch-relay.

Final whistle hasn't blown for tickets

More tickets will be released in the run up to the Games with around 1.5 million Olympic football tickets alone expected to be up for grabs from April.

Sign up for updates at Tickets.london2012.com.

The Other Olympics

One of the London 2012 mascots is called Wenlock. This is a nod to a forerunner of the Olympic Games which has been held in the town of Much Wenlock in Shropshire since 1850. The tournament features many of the sports that feature in the more modern version from athletics to fencing. This year the Wenlock Olympian Games will take place from 8th to 21st July 2012 and they've added some special events to mark the Olympics including a marathon and a 100 mile walk.

Tickets shouldn't be a problem – for more see Wenlock-olympian-society.org.uk.

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