There was a true spirit of unity permeating the air as thousands brought in the new year at the Royal Naval Dockyard's Time Warp 2000 party.

Only moments before that final countdown, the crowds were led in a rendition of Bob Marley's "One Love'' by internationally acclaimed Bermudian star Heather Nova.

Numbers were shouted out, bottles of champagne were poised, hands full of glitter were held at the ready, and party-goers waited for that earth stopping "zero'' to finally arrive after so much anticipation.

And when it did come, midnight was welcomed in by a lone piper, standing on the top of the clock tower and playing "Auld Lang Syne''.

Keith Stewart later explained what playing to the crowd at that definitive moment had been like.

"It was marvellous and it was a real adrenaline rush standing up there. The crowd was cheering loudly and I realised why when I saw they could see up my kilt.'' Mr. Stewart described the organisers of the event as "cool and competent'' and added: "It was really special to be able to come and play, especially at the Millennium.'' A fireworks display was next on the cards and the people stood in awe as the abundance of colours erupted in the sky, complemented by trance music which was pumped at full volume out of extremely large speakers.

Thus was the climax of a party which had been in full swing for four hours already and which continued on until 3 a.m., treating the crowds to a wide array of dance performances, a plethora of things to eat and drink and a wide array of musical styles, from motown and soca to disco and rock and roll. West End Development Corporation special events coordinator Miranda Mello called the party a "major success'' and noted that estimated attendance figures were between 15 and 20,000.

Possibly the highlight of the show was a performance by internationally acclaimed star Heather Nova.

Ms Nova, who played songs from both of her albums, spoke to The Royal Gazette briefly after wards.

"Its been nice to bring my music back to Bermuda and, of course, its always great to be back home,'' she said. Describing it as "an honour'' to have been able to play at the concert, Ms Nova added: "I just like to thank everyone for supporting me and I hope you enjoyed the show.'' One person who did just that was 21-year-old Anna-Laura Spurling who said: "Its been absolutely fabulous. I didn't know that Bermuda had such talent on offer.'' She added: "There's a good mix of people here and it's so friendly.'' Her friend, 24-year-old Jacob Hocking said: "It's excellent. There's a lot of beautiful women about.'' Another reveller, Ed Jennings, simply said: "I can't complain.'' And Natasha Rosdol, 19, said: "I'm enjoying myself tremendously. It's truly a joyous occasion.'' Ms Rosdol added: "I have to say this possibly wasn't the best kind of music to be playing for the new year. But, all the same, its nice to see all of the families out and enjoying themselves together.'' Nova hits the right note Tracy White said: "I'm enjoying the music and having a really good time''.

And 20-year-old Flora Peterich said: "I'm having a really nice time. There's such a good mix of people and the best part of the show was Dazzling Dance by the In Motion Dancers. They're so talented and original.'' Friends Elainor Strong, 21, and Adam Outerbridge, 22, both gave the evening's entertainment two thumbs up.

"I'm enjoying myself immensly,'' Ms Strong said, "Its such a good idea to have something that Government is helping to pay for.'' Mr. Outerbridge described the party as "stimulating'' and added: "It's like any other new year except much bigger.'' If these comments are anything to judge by, then, as a party, Time Warp 2000 can be deemed a genuine success.

Organised in cooperation with Government, the party was jointly sponsored by the Department of Tourism, Coca-Cola, Tyco International and Burrows and Lightbourne.

And, despite some comments from party-goers who complained of a badly organised ferry schedule to and from the event, the atmosphere at the event itself could not be described as anything other than vibrant.

One famous face on hand to back these statements up was Mix 106.1 DJ Peter Lewis, who led the countdown to the Millennium on stage with Heather Nova.

Later on he said: "If this is the end of the 20th century then I hope I'm around to live down the end of the 21st.

Mr. Lewis described the event as a "climactic zenith to a century's worth of anticipation''.

He added: "If the world should come to an end, at least I can thank my lucky stars that I stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Heather Nova while counting down to the new year.'' But in summing up, there was only one word Mr. Lewis felt could really sum-up how he felt.

"Millennerific.'' Star attraction: Heather Nova