Children in monkey costumes dance to celebrate the Chinese New Year, Feb 7, 2016. [Photo by Song Wei/chinadaily.com.cn]

Yang Zhuhua, an overseas Chinese who moved to Britain three years ago with her husband for work, attended the gala for the first time.

"It pretty much reminds of the good times back home when my family got together around the TV to watch the Spring Festival broadcast by China Central Television (CCTV) after the dinner," Yang says.

Watching the annual Spring Festival gala broadcast has been a ritual in almost every household in China on Spring Festival Eve.

The extravaganza began at 4pm (GMT) just as the Chinese New Year bell rang in China (Greenwich Mean Time is eight hours behind Beijing), and "it is a natural follow-up of the Spring Festival Gala back in Beijing, which wraps up at midnight", Zhang Yuxia (whose English name is Connie Alexander), choreographer and chief director of the gala told China Daily.