ON one side there were tears, hugs and a heartfelt rendition of Auld Lang Syne. On the other, there was Union flag-waving, cheering and quaffing champagne.
The UK’s long goodbye from the EU was sealed when MEPs delivered a resounding yes to Britain’s divorce from the Brussels bloc; 621 votes to 49.
It paved the way for Britain to leave after a 47-year relationship with the EU on Friday at 11pm with a deal in place.
Addressing the Brussels parliament, Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission President, said she was determined the EU and the UK should remain "good friends and good partners".
She quoted the British poet George Eliot, saying: "Only in the agony of parting do we look into the depth of love."
Ms von der Leyen added: "We will always love you and we will never be far. Long live Europe."
Guy Verhofstadt, the Parliament's Brexit co-ordinator, said the departure of a country which had "twice given its blood to liberate Europe" was a sad moment.
However, he predicted Britain would be back and would eventually rejoin the EU27 family.
"In the last couple of days I have received hundreds of mails from British citizens saying they desperately want to stay or return. So this vote is not an adieu, this vote is only an au revoir," he declared.
However, in his final speech to the Parliament, Nigel Farage, the leader of the Brexit Party, insisted there would be no turning back once Britain was out.
"This is it, the final chapter, the end of the road, a 47-year political experiment that the British frankly have never been very happy with," he declared.
The Brexit Party leader said he hoped Britain's departure would start a debate across the rest of Europe about the EU's future.
"I'm hoping this begins the end of this project. It's a bad project, it isn't just undemocratic, it's anti-democratic," insisted Mr Farage.
As his Brexit Party colleagues cheered and waved flags, their leader earned a rebuke from Mairead McGuinness, the Parliament’s Vice-President, who said to cheers from the chamber: “Put your flags away, you're leaving...and take them with you. Goodbye."
A number of British MEPs shared messages on social media as they prepared for their jobs to become redundant.
Alexandra Phillips, the Green Party MEP, tweeted: "I'm devastated to be leaving the best job in the world. I get to make real change every day while being surrounded by 27 different languages and cultures. I'm going to miss that. I'm going to miss my team, my colleagues too."
Brexit Party MEP Martin Daubney said: "It just feels emotional really, bittersweet. On the one hand, it's not a perfect deal but, on the other hand, we thought in September or October that this may never even happen. There were some dark, dark days.Today, we can build to a positive future."
Earlier, during his now weekly People’s PMQs on Facebook, Boris Johnson insisted the UK would make a "dignified" Brexit and embark on a new chapter.
He described the country’s departure on Friday as a "moment of hope and opportunity" and, acknowledging the country remained deeply split following the 2016 referendum, stressed he would be celebrating in a "respectful" manner.
Answering questions online from Downing St, he said: "What I will be doing is, in common with everybody else, I will be making a dignified exit from the European Union.
"I will be celebrating in a way that I hope is respectful of the scale of the event, that does justice to the astonishing feat that Britain has accomplished but also is mindful of everybody's feelings about what we are doing.”
He added: "It is a great moment for our country, it is a moment of hope and opportunity but it is also, I think, a moment for us to come together in a spirit of confidence."
On Friday, the Prime Minister will deliver an "address to the nation" an hour before the UK's departure from the bloc.
Government buildings in Whitehall will be lit up in the Union colours of red, white and blue to mark Brexit while Parliament Square and the Mall will be festooned with Union flags.
A light display, featuring a countdown clock, is also planned for Downing Street, while three million 50p coins will mark the occasion bearing the words "Peace, prosperity and friendship with all nations."
While there will be no Big Ben bongs to mark the occasion, Brexit-supporting campaigners have arranged a celebration in Parliament Square.
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