British and Irish Lions head coach Andy Farrell: "The captain is the beacon. He is the leader, he is the person everyone looks up to.

"Not only because he is outstanding at his profession, but how he makes others feel.

"It takes a special person, that's for sure."

British and Irish Lions head coach Andy Farrell: "It is four nations coming together as one and uniting and really taking over the country that we're touring.

"The minute that these guys are selected today - the bond and respect is instant.

"It is fantastic to see."

James Burridge
BBC Look East

When I interviewed Northampton's Tommy Freeman last week, he said he hadn’t received a pre-Lions letter.

So, it either got lost in the post or they’re not doing them any more!

Image source, Getty Images

British and Irish Lions head coach Andy Farrell: "I'm feeling great - I'm pretty chilled.

"My job is done and it's Ieuan's [British and Irish Lions chairman] job to read it out!

"Delighted to get to this stage. There's been a lot of work in the background with the planning.

"Now we get to the real stuff, and that's the rugby."

Mike Henson
BBC Sport at Indigo O2

Head coach Andy Farrell and Lions chairman Ieuan Evans, who could also play a bit, stroll onto the stage, suited and booted.

It is nearly time...

Tom English
BBC Scotland's chief sports writer

There seems to be more tension, more hype and more hoopla around this annoucement than others I can remember. The Covid-affected tour starved us, somewhat, of this kind of anticipation. There's nothing like it in sport.

Maro Itoje set to become captain 137 years after another Englishman, Bob Seddon, captained the first tour of this kind to the southern hemisphere.

Seddon's story is part of the fabric of the Lions. Halfway through the tour, he drowned in a boating accident on the Hunter River in New South Wales.

Chris Jones
BBC rugby union correspondent at Indigo O2 on BBC Radio 5 Live

The captain will be Maro Itoje.

He had to get himself to a dinner last night with the former captains and with the current coaches.

But 40-odd other players are in the dark.

As well as following our text updates, you can watch a live stream of the squad announcement at the top of this page.

It has just started.

BBC Sport now has a dedicated page with the latest British and Irish Lions news.

It will contain squad news, injury updates and expert analysis of the 2025 tour to Australia.

Chris Jones
BBC rugby union correspondent at Indigo O2

Three names are nailed on: Dan Sheehan at hooker, Jamison Gibson-Park at scrum-half and wing Tommy Freeman, they would all be first-time Lions.

Which in itself is a curious issue with this squad. There aren’t a host of players with Lions experience who are fit, in form and absolutely nailed-on.

Andy Burke
BBC Sport Scotland

Image source, Getty Images

After several tours that yielded precious few Scottish Lions, there were eight Scots on the last tour to South Africa in 2021. There's real hope that there will be a similar representation in Australia this summer.

The slight concern is the number of injuries that have been hampering some of the leading contenders.

Sione Tuipulotu and Scott Cummings both missed the Six Nations, while Huw Jones has not featured for Glasgow since that tournament.

Cummings has made a return to action with Glasgow, but Tuipulotu and Jones are still on the way back.

Zander Fagerson may not play again for Glasgow this season, but like Tuipulotu and Jones, he is expected to be fit for the Lions if selected.

Blair Kinghorn missed Toulouse's Champions Cup defeat by Bordeaux, while Duhan van der Merwe is another currently sidelined but again is not far from a return for Edinburgh.

Let's hope the injury problems clear in the next few weeks for those Scots selected to be on the plane to Australia.

Tom English
BBC Scotland's chief sports writer

So here we are at Murrayfield and the Edinburgh hopefuls - Duhan van der Merwe, Darcy Graham, Pierre Schoeman and the outsider Jamie Ritchie - have finished training and have all gone home.

"We're hoping that some will be getting a swift call to come back," says media guru, Stuart Rutherford, son of the great John. Now if you're talking about world class fly-halves...

Mike Henson
BBC Sport at Indigo O2

There was a suggestion that the Lions had struggled to shift the last of the 2,000 tickets to attend this very first public squad announcement.

There are a few empty seats in the upper tier, but otherwise it is looking like a good turnout.

Lions chief executive Ben Calveley explains how the squad announcement is a way to bring a bit of the tour to fans who can't travel to the other side of the world.

Assistant coach John Fogarty and fitness guru Aled Walters are brought on next. Good choice.

Walters says head coach Andy Farrell threatened to remove "a piece of his anatomy I am fond of" if he had leaked news of his hiring.

Image source, Getty Images

Wales picked up a second consecutive Wooden Spoon in this year's Six Nations and with that came a record 17th successive defeat.

That makes standing out for British and Irish Lions contention very difficult.

However, 23-year-old full-back Blair Murray has been a standout performer this season for Wales and Scarlets, punching above his diminutive frame to make five linebreaks in this year's Six Nations (only behind Blair Kinghorn, Tommy Freeman, James Lowe and Duhan van der Merwe from the home nations).

Wales captain Jac Morgan made the most tackles in this year's championship and also stood out in a team going backwards to press forward his case.

Scrum-half Tomos Williams is also in with a chance after impressing for Gloucester this season in the Premiership.

Three-time Lions tourist Taulupe Faletau recently helped Cardiff Blues to vital United Rugby Championship wins over Ospreys and Munster in their play-off push and will be hoping his experience can get him on tour, with Caelan Doris' injury potentially opening the door for a specialist number eight.

Andy Farrell currently has no Wales representation in his coaching staff, surely he won't do the same with the player group?

He certainly will only be picking on merit.

Image source, Getty Images

Danny Care
Former England scrum-half on BBC's Rugby Union Weekly

Previously I thought maybe the Lions had come too soon for Henry Pollock, but watching that win over Leinster, how can you not take him?

He looked better, in every aspect, than one of the best Ireland back rows ever.

He is an 80-minute player. To be at that level mentally and physically, in a Test match-level environment, is superb.

I like everything this kid is about.

I'm not sure if he would start, but how good would he be for competition on that tour?

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Henry Pollock was lining up for England against Ireland in the opening game of the Under-20 Six Nations at the end of January.

Now the 20-year-old is being tipped to tour Australia with the British and Irish Lions.

Some rise, eh!

He scored two tries on his England senior debut off the bench in the Six Nations against Wales in Cardiff, before scoring a sensational solo try for Northampton Saints against Sale Sharks two weeks later.

That form continued into Europe as he bagged tries in Champions Cup knockout wins over Clermont, Castres and Leinster.

The open-side flanker hit a hard line and rounded Leinster fly-half Sam Prendergast in Northampton's shock semi-final win over Leinster on Saturday to cap off a meteoric rise.

Pollock's confidence and personality would make him an exciting selection on and off the pitch.

Image source, Getty Images

Mike Henson
BBC Sport at Indigo O2

"The show is very interactive," promises the warm-up hype man, asking people to keep their phones on to take photos and videos and spread the Lions love.

The Indigo venue - a side room of the O2 Arena - is starting to fill up and the patrons are moving from the bar to the seats.

Head coach Andy Farrell will be on stage to talk to his public as part of the announcement. Probably won't take questions for those disappointed by the omission of their favourites.

A slight technical hitch as hosts Ugo Monye and Lee McKenzie's microphones fail to fire. But we are up and running.

"I'd pick Owen Farrell. Who do you want in there when the going gets tough? Test-match animals."

Back in October when he was asked by the Times who should start at fly-half, external for the first Test against Australia, former Ireland fly-half Johnny Sexton was retired and not involved in rugby union.

Now he is an assistant coach for that very tour, while leading the coaching staff is Farrell's father Andy.

Former England captain Owen has struggled at Racing 92, making 17 appearances in an injury-hit first season in France.

If selected, the 33-year-old 112-cap fly-half would be heading on his fourth Lions tour, and could offer some valuable experience to first-time tourists.

Would you take Farrell? Up for yes, down for no.

Image source, Getty Images