After a packed three days, that is the end of our live reporting of the events to mark 25 years of the Good Friday Agreement.

This week's coverage has been produced by Jess Lawrence, Matt Fox, Davy Wilson, Mike McBride, Finn Purdy, Jake Liggett, Luke Sproule and Michael Hirst.

We leave you with this video montage, looking back at the years since 1998.

Thanks for joining us for all the live coverage of the speeches, fringe events and tonight's gala dinner.

For those interested in tonight's menu, dignitaries sampled some of Northern Ireland's world-renowned seafood such as salmon, prawns and crab for starters.

The main course is chicken, fondant potato and savoy cabbage.

Dessert comprises a pear tart and sorbet.

Wednesday was the final day of the conference at Queen's University and the theme was Reimagine:

• US Special Envoy to Northern Ireland Joe Kennedy said he would focus on increasing the global reach of Northern Irish business and attracting further investment

• Former US President Bill Clinton told Northern Ireland politicians it was "time to get this show on the road", and restore Stormont
• Leading politicians and figures from across Northern Ireland society attended a gala dinner at Hillsborough Castle, where the prime minister told guests Northern Ireland would "never go back"

Day two was all about Renew:

• In what could be seen as a direct challenge to unionist politicians, Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris said a return to Stormont was the surest way to secure Northern Ireland's place in the union

• There was a panel discussion between senior figures in each of Northern Ireland's five main political parties
• In a visit to Londonderry's Guildhall, former US president Bill Clinton paid tribute to John Hume and David Trimble as men "who put their lives and careers on the line" for peace

There will be more speakers and events at the gala dinner tonight, but this is almost the end of our live coverage.

Before we go, a reminder of some of the key moments from the past three days of events to mark the Good Friday Agreement 25 years on.

Day one of the conference at Queen's University Belfast had the theme of Reflect, and significant contributions included:

• A keynote speech by George Mitchell, who chaired the peace talks that led to the agreement
• Later in the day a bronze bust of Mitchell was unveiled within the grounds of Queen's University
• In a panel discussion with some of the parties who negotiated the peace deal, former Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams said it wasn't a "destination but rather the beginning of a new journey"
• The final event of the day saw three former national leaders take to the stage in a panel chaired by Hillary Clinton: Sir Tony Blair, Bill Clinton and Bertie Ahern reflected on 1998

Sunak speaks of his visit to Det Ch Insp John Caldwell a few weeks ago.

The police officer was shot several times in February by dissident republican group the New IRA as he was loading footballs into his car boot following a youth training session in Omagh, County Tyrone.

The PM says they spoke about his ordeal, before saying there was one clear message from the people of Northern Ireland to the world.

"We will never go back," he says.

He finishes his speech by welcoming former leaders Sir Tony Blair and Bertie Ahern.

Before dinner gets started at Hillsborough Castle, Rishi Sunak has stood up to say a few words.

He says it is a privilege to be sharing a room with those who made the Good Friday Agreement a reality.

Sunak then pays tribute to those who negotiated the agreeement but are no longer with us.

If you want to watch his speech you can click play at the top of this page.

Image source, PA Media

On a day where both leaders spoke of the importance of their respective governments' roles in the Northern Ireland peace process, Rishi Sunak and Leo Varadkar held their first bilateral meeting.

During his speech earlier at Queen's, the taoiseach said the peace process was at it's strongest when both governments worked hand-in-hand.

During a press conference outside the university's Lanyon building, Varadkar said he wanted to discuss the UK government's controversial legacy bill during his meeting with the prime minister.

Chris Page
BBC News Ireland correspondent

The gala dinner at Hillsborough Castle is one of the biggest gatherings of present and former political leaders ever held in Northern Ireland.

Rishi Sunak has been joined by four former residents of Number 10 - Sir Tony Blair, Theresa May, Boris Johnson and Liz Truss.

Former Northern Ireland secretaries who have returned to Hillsborough include Theresa Villiers and Lord Mandelson.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is here - as are Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, Bill and Hillary Clinton, former Stormont First Ministers Peter Robinson and Baroness Foster and the Sinn Féin deputy leader Michelle O’Neill, who is in line to be first minister if the devolved government is restored.

Hillsborough couldn’t be more picturesque on this bright spring evening.

As the guests arrive there’s the sense we’re seeing the sunset of a political era.

The 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement has brought about a cross-generational gathering of local, European and global politicians.

With the momentous events of 1998 receding into history - it is unlikely Northern Ireland will see an event like this again.

Bill and Hillary Clinton held hands as they walked up the drive to Hillsborough Castle.

Boris Johnson on the other hand - like all the former prime ministers present - arrived by himself before having a warm conversation with Chris Heaton-Harris at the door.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, PA

Mark Simpson
BBC News NI

Former US Senator George Mitchell is attending tonight's dinner, but beforehand he spoke to BBC News NI and said his visit to Belfast this week could be his last.

The former talks chairman, 89, who oversaw the negotiations which led to the Good Friday Agreement, suffers from acute leukemia.

“To be perfectly frank, this could be my last visit to Northern Ireland," he said.

“I’ve spent the last three years receiving chemotherapy, a lot of it in hospitals. My health has gone down, then up and then down again.

“I honestly don’t know whether I will be back. I certainly would like to do so, but I can’t be sure of that.”

Mitchell began chairing multi-party talks in Belfast in June 1996 after a long career in the Senate.

He kept the negotiations going through many political crises, including when Ian Paisley’s Democratic Unionist Party walked out of the talks in 1997 as Sinn Féin joined the discussions.

Asked if he had any regrets about his time in Belfast, Senator Mitchell said: “No I don’t really.

“I did the best I could, in difficult circumstances.

“I made a lot of mistakes. That’s human nature. I don’t think you should agonise about ‘should I have done this, should I do that?’

“You make the best decisions you can in the circumstances, and you move forward."

Matt Fox
BBC News NI, at Hillsborough

Sir Keir Starmer spoke to the BBC before he entered Hillsborough Castle.

“You had an incredible generation in those who brought the Good Friday Agreement together,” he says.

When asked about the DUP’s boycott of the Stormont institutions, he says he genuinely believes all parties want the Stormont executive back up and running.

He says there is a need to create the conditions for power-sharing to resume.

More people have been making their way through the sandstone gates of Hillsborough for tonight's dinner.

Among them, Vice-President of the European Commission Maroš Šefčovič, US Special Envoy to Northern Ireland Joe Kennedy, former First Minister Baroness Foster and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer.

Former prime ministers are also set to join the celebrations tonight.

Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, Theresa May and Sir Tony Blair are expected to be there.

Guests at tonight's gala dinner will be taken on a whistle-stop tour of Northern Ireland.

Each of the tables has been named after famous landmarks.

We're still waiting to find out what's on the menu for this evening's event.

But for now, attendees are being welcomed by Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris.

So far Assembly Speaker Alex Maskey, DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson and former DUP leader Peter Robinson have arrived.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar is another who has shown up on time.

Matt Fox
BBC News NI, in Hillsborough

The media have gathered in sunny Royal Hillsborough as organisers prepare for this evening’s concluding event.

A substantial policing operation is underway in this otherwise quiet, picturesque village but the locals - who are used to famous visitors to Hillsborough Castle - seem pretty unfazed by it all.

“Who’s coming and how much did that cost?” asks an unimpressed onlooker.

Luke Sproule
BBC News NI

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, fresh from this speech at Queen's University, has arrived at Hillsborough Castle.

The castle is not the medieval structure its name might suggest, it's more like a large stately home.

It is the official residence of the King in Northern Ireland and from the 1920s to the 1970s it was the home of their representative - the governor.

Tonight's gala dinner is just the latest in a long line of events it has hosted, from a visit by US President George W Bush to crunch talks on the future of devolution in 2010.

Enda McClafferty
BBC News NI political editor

On the sidelines of the gala dinner at Hillsborough Castle, Sunak will meet Stormont's political leaders.

One of the first to arrive for the meal was former Northern Ireland Secretary Lord Mandelson.

On his way in he said he was here to celebrate the agreement, but also to remember the political leaders who played such a key role in the negotiations but are no longer with us.

Asked about the current standoff at Stormont, he said the political instability today is nothing compared to the instability 25 years ago

He was also confident unionist leaders would eventually make the right call

The leader of the Democratic Unionist Party has been speaking to BBC News NI after the Agreement 25 conference at Queen's University.

The Northern Ireland secretary and the prime minister both said the party should return to the power-sharing government at Stormont, which it is currently boycotting in protest against post-Brexit trade rules for Northern Ireland.

But Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said the mood in London was different from "the Queen's University bubble".

Speaking at Belfast City Airport, he added: "There is a realism in London that frankly there isn’t at the event at Queens.

"A realism that we need to sort this out, that whilst we will have lots of people that will tell us what the problem is I haven’t heard anyone come forward with a solution.

"Except for those who want to exclude unionists, who think the answer is to abandon cross-community power sharing."

Chris Page
BBC News Ireland correspondent

The closing speeches of the Agreement 25 conference hailed the renewal of relationships between London, Dublin and Brussels.

Rishi Sunak described his Irish counterpart Leo Varadkar as “my friend”, and paid tribute to the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen for helping create the “breakthrough moment” of the Windsor Framework.

Von der Leyen underlined the improvement of UK-EU relations since Sunak became prime minister, saying “we agreed to focus on the road ahead, rather than past disagreements”.

Varadkar noted an observation made by many involved in the peace process in recent weeks - that “Northern Ireland works best when the British and Irish governments work together”.

Image source, PA

Varadkar and Sunak echoed each other in referring to the late David Trimble’s Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech - referring to hills ahead, but mountains behind.

The theme was clear - the difficult relations in the years following the Brexit referendum were now in the past.

The strengthening of bonds between international leaders may help increase the pressure for a restoration of Northern Ireland’s devolved government.

But ultimately Sunak, Varadkar and von der Leyen do not have the power to bring back power-sharing in Belfast.

The rules of cross-community consensus in the peace settlement mean a Stormont Executive can be formed only when unionists and nationalists agree to take part together - and there is no imminent sign the Democratic Unionist Party is planning to lift its veto.

Jake Liggett
BBC News NI, at Queen's University

Queen's University's vice-chancellor Prof Ian Greer wraps up the third and final day of the conference marking the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement.

After a series of high-profile speeches, panel discussions and fringe events the last of the speakers are making their way out of the university.

We will be leaving the Whita Hall too, but our live coverage of 25th anniversary events will be continuing, including a gala dinner at Hillsborough Castle this evening.

Image source, Reuters