The Opening Ceremony, held at the London Olympic Stadium, marked the official start of the XIV summer Paralympic. The ceremony, co-directed by Jenny Sealey and Bradley Hemmings, revolved around a journey through time and the great discoveries that changed our perception as to the possibilities of the mind and the human spirit. The show, which opened with an invitation by Stephen Hawking to “look up at the stars” and never lose your curiosity, continued with Sir Ian McKellen who led the way to the character of Miranda, drawn by Shakespeare's “The Tempest”, through a path that also saw the celebration of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Newton's theory and Higgs particle. Key elements of the ceremony were also the athletes' parade, the raising of the British and Olympic flag, the lighting of the Paralympic cauldron by Margaret Maughan, first-ever British athlete to win a Paralympic gold. “Tonight is about welcoming the world to a global Games, an event where we will experience every single emotion, including ones we never thought possible", said Sir Philip Craven, Chairman of the International Paralympic Committee.