DARTS fans dressed as Ali G and King Charles last night as they stormed Ally Pally for the PDC World Championships.
Over 90,000 spectators will knock back an estimated half-a-million pints of lager as the world's flechette masters take to the stage for 19 days of unadulterated darts heaven.
Santas, Beefeaters, a Ketchup bottle and a man dressed as the late Queen were among the revellers at Friday's opener.
Others opted for dart board face masks while an entire table of lads donned Hawaiian shirts and enormous moustaches.
England's Michael Smith is hoping to defend his 2022 title as he eyes the £500,000 top prize.
The runner-up earns a cool £200,000 while semi-finalists will pocket £100,000 each.
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Those that reach the quarters win £50,000.
Smith, 33, beat Michael van Gerwen 7-4 in last year's final to lift the trophy for the first time.
But the St Helens native narrowly avoided disaster on Friday after fighting back from 2-1 down to deny Dutchman Kevin Doets a place in round three.
Legends such as Peter Wright, Gary Anderson and Gerwyn Price are in the frame to pick up Darts' biggest prize.
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Price and World Matchplay champion Nathan Aspinall have entered the tournament in the second round due to their protected rankings.
Van Gerwen will be looking to win his fourth title as he faces Keane Barry or Reynaldo Rivera in his opening round.
The Dutchman – whose walk on music is Seven Nation Army – has not won the world championship since 2019.
Fallon Sherrock qualifies again for the tournament after becoming the first woman in 2020 to win a World Championship match.
She faces Jermaine Wattimena in the first round and could be matchedagainst Germany's Martin Schindler if she reaches the second.
But the lead up to the event hasn't been plain sailing after darts legend Gary Anderson lashed out at pundits of the game.
The two-time PDC World Champion said the sport's experts "are full of poo" as he launched a foul-mouthed attack ahead of his 23rd PDC/BDO World Championship.
The Scot blasted: “Anyone who says, ‘He’s done’, well, they don’t know what goes on in someone’s head or is going on in their life. They haven’t got a clue.
“It’s like when they write James Wade off. And yet he’s flying. They haven’t got a clue.
“Ex-darts players, if someone is that rubbish or that good on the oche, why are they sitting there talking about it?
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“I don’t listen to them. I think they are full of poo."
Where can I watch the 2023/2024 World Championship and can I stream it?
- You can watch the PDC World Darts Championship on Sky Sports Darts.
- Existing customers will be able to stream through the Now TV app and Sky Go app which is free to download to your mobile and tablet devices.
- Coverage begins on Friday at 7pm GMT.
- Afternoon sessions will then begin at 12.30pm GMT and evening sessions continuing at 7pm until the quarter-finals.
- The semi-finals will start at 7.30pm GMT on Tuesday, January 2.
- The final is on Wednesday, January 3 at 7pm.
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