Edinburgh's Hogmanay celebrations will celebrate the ties between Scotland and the continent as the UK prepares to leave the EU in 2019.

Franz Ferdinand and Capercaillie are among the Scottish bands performing alongside European acts including French performance artists Compagnie Transe Express.

Youngsters will also play a key part in the festivities to mark Scotland's Year of Young People 2018 drawing to a close.

The three-day festival opens on December 30 with a traditional torchlight procession through the city.

This year's procession will be lead by pipe and drum bands and will culminate in a "stunning" visual moment in Holyrood Park, where the procession will form the outline of Scotland lit by torches.

On December 31, bands, DJs, street performers, dancers, acrobats, disco divas and fire eaters from Scotland and mainland Europe will be performing at the street party, which starts at 7.30pm.

Franz Ferdinand will headline the Concert in the Gardens at the foot of Castle Rock, supported by Metronomy and Free Love, while some of the country's top ceilidh bands will play at Ceilidh under the Castle.

Scots singer-songwriter Gerry Cinnamon will headline the Waverley stage, with Judge Jules headlining the DJ stage on Castle Street while Elephant Sessions will perform at South St David Street.

At midnight, German band Meute will provide the soundtrack to the fireworks display from Edinburgh Castle.

The McEwan Hall will be a Hogmanay venue for the first time, hosting three major concerts - Symphonic Ibiza on December 30 and Capercaillie and Carlos Nunez with special guests on January 1.

Charlie Wood and Ed Bartlam, directors of the Hogmanay, said: "Edinburgh's Hogmanay is all about inviting the world to come on in and celebrate the end of one year and the start of a new, and as we move from 2018 to 2019 there's no better time to celebrate Scotland's cultural ties with Europe.

He added: "We're confident that Edinburgh's Hogmanay offers something for everyone."

The celebrations are set to continue past the Bells and into the New Year with more than more than 1,000 people are expected to take place in the Loony Dook in the Firth of Forth to raise money for their chosen charities on January 1st.

In addition, the Message from the Skies event asks six leading writers to each write a love letter to Europe. Running alongside the Edinburgh International Book Festival, it runs from January 1 to 25.

Martin Green, Edinburgh's Hogmanay executive producer, said: "It's an honour to have another opportunity to lead the creative team on the world's greatest street party.

"It's appropriate that this year we have chosen to say loudly and proudly to our European friends - 'we love you!"'