Watch live: New York City’s Times Square hosts ‘Good Riddance’ day

Watch live as the 17th annual Good Riddance Day kicks off at noon on Broadway Plaza, New York, on Thursday, 28 December, ahead of the much-anticipated New Year’s Eve celebration.

The traditional event offers people in Times Square the opportunity to write down all the unpleasant and unwanted things they want to leave in the past as they enter a new year, with those bad memories being thrown into an incinerator.

Adding a touch of magic, a magician will also appear to make sure those bad memories disappear.

All of this is happening as New York City gears up for the grand New Year’s celebration.

Good Riddance Day is inspired by a Latin American tradition in which dolls were stuffed with objects that represented bad memories before setting them on fire.