Summary

  • President Macron says "the bells of Notre Dame are ringing again" in a speech at the reopening ceremony of the cathedral, you can follow by clicking the Watch Live button at the top of the page

  • US President-elect Donald Trump greeted the Prince of Wales with a handshake as they arrived at the ceremony

  • Notre-Dame is officially reopening more than five years after it was badly damaged in a fire

  • We got our first look inside the cathedral since the refurbishment was completed when French President Emmanuel Macron toured the site last week

  • The Archbishop of Paris will then host a commemorative service followed by a live concert from 21:15 CET (20:15 GMT)

Live Reporting

Edited by Jack Burgess

  1. Cathedral reopens in week of political turmoil in France

    Emmanuel Macron addresses the nation in televised speech after the collapse of the Barnier government. He's sitting down in a mid-shot picture wearing a dark blue suit, matching tie and white shirt. A French flag is visible to his rightGetty Images

    The reopening of Notre-Dame coincides with a week of political drama and turmoil in France, culminating in the resignation of French Prime Minister Michel Barnier and the collapse of the government.

    The government collapsed as MPs in the French parliament backed a no confidence vote in Barnier after he used special powers to force through a social security budget without a vote, leading to outrage across the political divide.

    The events of this week have furthered the country’s political instability, marking the first time the country’s government has collapsed in a no-confidence vote since 1962.

    And such drama has come at an awkward time.

    President Macron addressed the nation on Thursday evening rejecting opposition pressure to stand down.

    Macron will welcome Donald Trump and dozens of world leaders on Saturday to show off the restoration of the Notre Dame.

    He will be hoping to find a replacement for Barnier before the big day.

  2. Macron holds bilateral meeting with Trump ahead of Notre-Dame ceremony

    Donald Trump and Emmanuel Macron before bilateral meeting at Elysee Palace. They're both standing in a heavily decorate room, Trump (L) is wearing a dark blue suit and yellow tie while Macron (R) is in a black suti and matching tie with his left hand in his pocketEPA

    President Macron is hosting a meeting with Donald Trump at the Élysée Palace before they head to the Île de la Cité for the reopening ceremony of Notre-Dame cathedral.

    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will also be joining them, a presidential official told AFP.

    Speaking to the press, Trump says he and Macron had enjoyed "really great success" working together during his first term in office.

    "And it certainly seems like the world is going a little crazy right now. And we'll be talking about that," Trump adds.

    The trip to France marks Trump's return to the world stage, still a private citizen but already preparing to tackle a host of international crises.

  3. The effort of thousands of skilled workers pulled Notre-Dame from the ashes

    The April 2019 fire badly damaged the cathedral’s roof and its Gothic spire, and the blaze left behind rubble and debris after it was extinguished.

    A public body tasked with managing the restoration work was created by law and an appeal for funds raised €846m (£703m).

    Jean-Louis Georgelin, a former French army general, was in charge of the project until his death in August 2023. He was succeeded by civil servant Philippe Jost.

    An estimated 2,000 tradespeople worked on rebuilding the Parisian landmark.

    Here’s a look at how their work transformed Notre-Dame Cathedral:

    Rubble, debris, and black timber are all piled up on the floor in front of three statues and a golden Christian cross. The statues are grey.Getty Images

    Statues from the Vow of Louis XIII following the blaze.

    The statues from the Vow of Louis XIII. The statues are large and white, two depicting men and one depicting a woman. A large golden Christian cross is at the back of the room in front of blue-stained glass windows.EPA

    A room glowing following the clean-up and restoration work, which included cleaning the statues

    Rubble and debris are on the floor of the cathedral in front of rows of wooden pews, with the sky visible through the large parts of the roof, which is visibly burntGetty Images

    You could look up to the sky in part of the cathedral as the roof was badly damaged in the fire.

    The nave of the cathedral with a few people walking on its black and white squared-floor. There are large arches and a high vaulted ceiling. The stonework is a cream colour and light is coming from several golden chandeliers and purple stained-glass windowsEPA

    Light floods the nave of Notre-Dame Cathedral following the rebuilding work - but no longer from the sky.

    A composite image showing one photo with the cathedral’s roof on fire in April 2019, and another photo from the same angle showing scaffolding and the rebuilding of the roof and Gothic spireReuters

    Notre-Dame Cathedral roof and Gothic spire on fire in April 2019, and its restoration, pictured in November 2024

  4. What is planned for the opening week?

    Notre-Dame cathedral by night illuminated by curated set of lights ahead of its reopeningGetty Images

    The city of Paris won’t just be celebrating the reopening today - an “Octave of Reopening” is planned through next week.

    • Wednesday 11 December - Welcoming merchants and local residents
    • Thursday 12 December - Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe
    • Friday 13 December - Return of the Crown of Thorns
    • Monday 16 December - Normal opening hours resume

    Masses will also be held during the week, including a service for the firefighters and those who worked on the re-opening project.

  5. Emmanuel Macron welcomes Trump ahead of Notre-Dame reopening

    Emmanuel Macron shakes hands with Donald Trump as he welcomes him to the Elysee Palace ahead of Notre-Dame's reopening this eveningReuters

    In the last few minutes, French President Emmanuel Macron welcomed President-elect Donald Trump to the Élysée Palace.

  6. Prince William deployed to Paris to build bridges with fellow guest Trump

    Sean Coughlan
    BBC News royal correspondent

    Prince William in dark blue morning coat, white shirt and red tie - mid shot, cuts off below the shoulders. He's smiling as he walks during an official outing in LondonGetty Images

    Prince William has been scrambled, like in his old air ambulance days, to rush to this meeting in Paris with President-elect Donald Trump.

    Although what’s in need of rescue on this occasion is the well-being of the special relationship between the US and the UK.

    It’s an important connection for both sides - and for wider military links such as Nato - but there’s not a lot of obvious empathy between Starmer’s Labour government and the incoming MAGA Republicans.

    So the royals, who are funded by taxpayers, are being deployed to smooth the path, with Prince William taking on the statesman role, meeting Trump before attending the re-opening of the Notre Dame cathedral.

    Trump is a royal fan, so that might make for a more positive connection. Prince William last met Trump in 2019, during the then president’s visit to the UK, where Trump spoke very enthusiastically about his meeting with the late Queen Elizabeth II.

    But there’s a massive contrast in their styles. Prince William’s flagship project is his Earthshot environmental awards, while Trump has dismissed efforts to boost green energy as a “scam”.

    This week Prince William went to serve dinner at the Passage homelessness charity and on Friday night he was helping with a “kindness tree” outside Westminster Abbey.

    A kindness tree and campaigning on housing and climate-change aren’t exactly the MAGA style.

    But the aim of this hurriedly-arranged meeting will be for a royal charm offensive to help build bridges at an uncertain time for western alliances.

  7. Storm Darragh means ceremony will now be entirely inside

    Some tweaks have been made to the reopening ceremony today in light of Storm Darragh which has resulted in the death of one man and caused infrastructure damage and travel problems in the UK.

    Yesterday, a statement was released saying that due to the weather forecast the whole ceremony will now take place inside.

    A concert will start at 21:30 CET (20:30 GMT) lasting around two-and-a-half hours.

    Joining President Macron will be Prince William and President-elect Donald Trump, to name a few of the international guests attending the reopening ceremony.

  8. Notre-Dame was minutes away from ‘complete’ destruction

    Flames engulf spire of Notre-Dame cathedral after fire erupts inside. Clouds of billowing white smoke can be seen in the sky with the skyline of Paris in the backgroundGetty Images

    The cathedral had been just 15-20 minutes away from total destruction before firefighters finally brought the flames which engulfed Notre-Dame under control, according to French authorities.

    The fire, which broke out in the medieval cathedral’s roof space just before 6.20pm on 15 April 2019, had destroyed most of the roof, the spire, the lead from some of the windows, and some of the pews.

    Emergency respondents hadn’t been able to use planes or helicopters in their efforts to put out the flames because of the danger of structural damage.

    Instead, drones and robots helped firefighters direct their hoses. The fire was completely under control by 3.40am, and by mid-morning the drama was over.

  9. Take a look at Notre-Dame’s transformation

    Videos show how renovation work has progressed on Notre-Dame, five years after a devastating fire at the gothic cathedral.

    The 850-year-old building's spire and roof collapsed in April 2019 but the main structure, including the two bell towers, were saved.

    In a speech after touring the cathedral last week, France’s President Emmanuel Macron said 2,000 workers skilled in masonry, carpentry and art experts, among tradespeople from countless other industries, "spent their days and nights here" to restore it.

    Notre-Dame's transformation five years after fire

  10. A new dawn for Notre-Dame Cathedral

    A view of the façade of Notre-Dame Cathedral. It has three arches with six tall doors on the bottom, a row of sculptures above that, and then a third level with two more arches, which contain windows, and a circular window pane in the centre. Above that are two stone towers.Reuters

    Notre-Dame Cathedral is opening its doors today, more than five years after a fire ravaged the Parisian landmark.

    The world watched on as the blaze spread along the roof and shrouded the medieval building in smoke on 15 April 2019. Some 400 firefighters battled the flames for 15 hours.

    After inspecting the devastation the next day, French President Emmanuel Macron promised to have Notre-Dame re-opened for visitors within five years.

    Renovation work is still not complete: scaffolding is still around much of the eastern end of the cathedral and in the coming years, the outside wall of the apse and sacristy will need treatment.

    But today marks the official “entry” into the cathedral, and tomorrow the first Catholic Mass will take place.

    • You can join along today’s events at the iconic cathedral by clickingWatch live at the top of this page.