Londoners came together in one of its LGBT hotspots to respect the victims of the Orlando nightclub shootings and call for solidarity.

Members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transexual community, as well as many hetrosexual supporters, gathered in Old Compton Street in Soho a day after 49 people were shot dead in a LGBT+ nightclub in Florida in the early hours of Sunday morning in the US.

Jeremy Joseph, owner of Soho's LGBT+ nightclub G-A-Y, plus others across the country, led the calls for 'solidarity' and 'vigilance', as fears of a similar attack in the UK grow .

Old Compton Street was packed with supporters in the wake of the shootings in a LGBT nightclub in Florida

Mr Joseph said: "We're living under threat of attack. I woke up on Sunday morning and first saw the news, it was my biggest nightmare come true."

He added: "I hope people carry on. You can't run away from this, you have to face it, so the priority is we show solidarity with Orlando and do everything we can to make sure our venues are as safe as we can make it.

"Not just LGBT venues but it needs to be at train stations, and restaurants and theatres, everywhere."

Banners urged people not to attack Islam after the Orlando murders

ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack, with the gunman, Omar Mateen, said to have been potentially radicalised.

However, there were banners on show in Soho urging people not to use the shootings as a reason to attack Islam, or the peaceful majority of Muslims.

At the vigil, following a silence in respect of those killed, balloon was released for every victim of the attack in Orlando, to cheers by the watching crowds.

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Earlier on Monday, rainbow LGBT+ flags were raised at town halls in west London as another symbol of togetherness.

The flags flew at half mast to mark the killings.

The owner of LGBT+ nightclub G-A-Y has called for solidarity