Olympic Opening Ceremony 2012: Queen Elizabeth, Mr Bean and London's Top Moments

Given rumors that Mary Poppins would battle Harry Potter villain Lord Voldemort at the opening ceremonies of the 2012 London Olympics, there was already a sense that Great Britain would put on a show on Friday.

But Great Britain put on a show and more, complete with a world-famous comedian, a legendary action hero, one of the country's greatest football stars and, of course, some of the best music in history.

Many of us didn't know quite what to expect headed into the opening ceremonies in London, but it may have surpassed even the highest expectations.

Here's a look at the top moments of the opening ceremonies on Friday.

Queen Elizabeth and James Bond

As expected, James Bond (aka Daniel Craig) made an appearance at the opening ceremonies, alongside Queen Elizabeth. He zipped to Buckingham Palace, where he was informed that his mission was to launch the Olympiad. 

Kudos to British director Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire, Trainspotting), who was given unprecedented access to the Palace, where numerous private rooms were displayed.

The finishing touch was a Bond stuntman parachuting down from a helicopter, with a Queen Elizabeth stuntperson following his lead. There's something awesome about Queen Elizabeth dropping heroically from the sky.

Mr. Bean

There weren't a whole lot of tips pointing towards Mr. Bean being in the ceremonies, but I was ecstatic when he all of a sudden starting playing keyboard to "Chariots of Fire" with the orchestra (GIF here). 

There was even a video clip of the movie, complete with Mr. Bean trying to keep up with the rest of the runners, eventually hitching a ride in an effort to beat the competition.

Interestingly enough, this actually happened in the 1904 Olympics, when Fred Lorz hitchhiked his way to victory in the marathon. 

Lord Voldemort vs. 30 Mary Poppinses

Even after hearing rumors of Mary Poppins descending from the sky to battle Lord Voldemort, I still didn't believe it.

But it really did happen on Friday, with about 30 Mary Poppinses floating from the rafters with their umbrellas and vanquishing the Harry Potter villain...or at least a 40-foot inflatable version of him.

Just when I think I've seen it all in this world... 

Dance Party

I honestly would have been fine with the entire opening ceremonies being a giant dance party. The music at the ceremonies on Friday was fantastic, ranging from The Beatles to the Rolling Stones to Queen to Led Zeppelin to the Sex Pistols to David Bowie.

Speaking of David Bowie, a few spacemen took off into the sky with jetpacks (yes, jetpacks) when his music was playing. There may be some things in this world that are more amazing than jetpacks, but I can't think of any at the moment.

David Beckham on a Speedboat

I figured David Beckham would arrive in some fantastical way in the opening ceremonies, but I didn't expect him to come roaring in on a speedboat. 

The fact that the British football star was alongside lovely heptathlon athlete Jessica Ennis was even better.

I guess you could say Beckham kicked off the 2012 London Olympics in grand fashion.

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