Labour take overall control of Norwich City Council and win Great Yarmouth Borough Council - full results and photo galleries

The party took full advantage of a backlash against the coalition parties with precious gains of seats in Norwich and Yarmouth.

After running Norwich City Council as a minority administration since 2004, Labour are celebrating taking overall control of City Hall.

Fifteen seats were up for grabs in all 13 of the city's wards and Labour's key gains were in Bowthorpe, Lakenham and Catton Grove.

The first result, which came through just before 12.30pm, saw Labour's Deborah Gihawi comfortably hold onto her Mile Cross seat.

She garnered 1,019 votes, well ahead of second placed Green Richard Edwards. But it was the Green Party celebrating in Mancroft, where Lucy Howard saw off the challenge of Labour's Marion Maxwell to retain that ward.

Labour have held onto Sewell, through Kevin Barker, while the Greens easily kept hold of Nelson ward through David Rogers.

The Greens also retained Thorpe Hamlet, with Ben Price more than 200 votes ahead of Labour's Tony Waring in a ward rocked by the defection of Phil Hardy, the former leader of the Green group at Norfolk County Council to the Conservatives.

The Greens held onto both the seats in Wensum, one of which was triggered by the resignation of Green councillor Steve Altman, who was jailed for arson.

But Labour made a gain in Lakenham at the expense of the Liberal Democrats and in Catton Grove at the expense of the Conservatives.

They also took Bowthorpe from the Conservatives, with Sally Button way ahead of second placed Conservative Stuart Taylor.

Long-serving Crome Labour councillor David Bradford comfortably kept his seat and leader Brenda Arthur did likewise in University ward.

The one bright spot on a tough night for the Liberal Democrats was that Judith Lubbock retained her Eaton ward.

Ahead of these elections – and the two by-elections in Catton Grove and Wensum triggered by resignations – the make-up of the city council had been Labour (18), Green Party (15), Liberal Democrats (four), Conservatives (two).

With the two Conservative loses wiping them out of City Hall completely, the make-up now is Labour (21), Greens (15), Liberal Democrats (3).

In Great Yarmouth, Labour took control after turning four Conservative seats red.

The make-up of the council before the elections was 23 Conservatives and 16 Labour, while today Labour have 20 and the Conservatives 19.

Council leader Steve Ames lost his Bradwell South and Hopton seat to Labour's Hilary Wainwright, by just over 100 votes.

Mrs Wainwright, whose husband Trevor is the Labour group leader, said: 'I can't believe it, I am in shock. I am really pleased because we needed this seat.

'I will do my best to become the best councillor I can be. I will always be at the end of the phone. If people come to me with a problem I will do my best to see it through.'

The first of the results came through just after 11.15pm, with Labour's Penelope Linden and Marlene Fairhead triumphing in Southtown and Cobholm and St Andrews, respectively.

The Conservatives held Gorleston through Bertie Collins, but there were less than 50 votes between him and UKIP challenger Matthew Smith.

Mr Collins's Tory colleague Paul Garrod did not manage to retain Yarmouth North, which was snatched by Labour's Colin Fox, who beat him by 72 votes.

Lee Sutton won Central and Northgate for Labour, with incumbent independent Mike Taylor not standing.

Labour then made another two gains at the expense of the Conservatives. Jamie Smith took Bradwell North and Sylvia Platt stormed to victory in Magdalen.

Polling stations closed at 10pm, with predictions that the wet and windy weather will lead to a low turn-out for the elections.

Nationwide, where about 5,000 seats are at stake at 181 councils, the coalition parties have endured a rough night so far.

But Prime Minister David Cameron will be hoping that Boris Johnson can buck the trend by securing re-election as London Mayor.

An eve-of-poll survey for the Evening Standard suggested that Mr Johnson - who gave a confident thumbs-up as he arrived to cast his ballot in north London on Thursday morning - is set for victory over Labour's Ken Livingstone, by a margin of 53pc to 47pc.

While two thirds of the local election results nationally are expected in the early hours of this morning (Friday), the final decision of Londoners on who will be their mayor is not likely to be known until this evening

Make sure you get the EDP tomorrow for full analysis of the local elections.

RESULTS

Key: Conservatives - C; Labour - Lab; Lib Dem - LD; Green - G; UK Independence Party - UKIP; Independent - Ind. Star denotes sitting councillor.

GREAT YARMOUTH:

Bradwell North:

• Alexander Dougal (UKIP) 346

• Carl Smith (C) 550

• JAMIE SMITH (Lab) 647

Lab gain from C - Maj 97.

Bradwell South and Hopton:

• *Steve Ames (C) 545

• John Brookshaw (Ind) 94

• Alexander Monk (UKIP) 316

• HILARY WAINWRIGHT (L) 649

Lab gain from C - Maj 104.

Central and Northgate:

• Gordon Dean (LD) 36

• Thomas Garrod (C) 317

• John Holt (UKIP) 295

• LEE SUTTON (Lab) 750

Lab gain from Ind - Maj 433.

Claydon:

• *TONY BLYTH (L) 824

• Ashley Bullard (C) 327

• Liam Probert (UKIP) 302

Lab hold - Maj 497.

East Flegg:

• *GEORGE JERMANY (C) 540

• Matthew McDonnell (United Peoples' Party) 59

• Rex Parkinson-Hare (UKIP) 230

• Christine Williamson (L) 366

Con hold - Maj 174.

Gorleston:

• *BERTIE COLLINS (C) 498

• Peter Fairhead (Lab) 374

• Matthew Smith, (UKIP) 450

C hold - Maj 48.

Magdalen:

• Michael Monk (UKIP) 284

• *Pat Page (C) 363

• SYLVIA PLATT (Lab) 825

Lab gain from C - Maj 462.

Nelson:

• Margaret Greenacre (C) 210

• *MICHAEL JEAL (Lab) 687

• Michael Wilde (UKIP) 254

Lab hold - Maj 433.

Ormesby:

• Jack Cutting (UKIP) 326

• Maurice Johnson (L) 275

•* CHARLES REYNOLDS (C) 577

C hold - Maj 251.

Southtown and Cobholm:

• Colin Aldred (UKIP) 183

• Brian Dolton (C) 88

• Nicholas Dyer (LD) 36

• *PENELOPE LINDEN (Lab) 399

Lab hold - Maj 216.

St Andrews:

• *MARLENE FAIRHEAD (Lab) 539

• Robert Scott, (UKIP) 194

• Bryan Watts (C) 250

Lab hold - Maj 345.

West Flegg:

• *BARRY COLEMAN (C) 684

• Katie Jeavons-Golding (L) 343

• Paul Toplass (UKIP) 203

C hold - Maj 341.

Yarmouth North:

• Jonathan Childs (UKIP) 232

• COLIN FOX (Lab) 493

• *Paul Garrod (C) 421

• Anthony Harris (LD) 46

• Joshua White (G) 46

• Lab gain from C - Maj 72

NORWICH:

Bowthorpe:

• Jean Bishop (G) 350

• SALLY BUTTON (Lab) 1268

• Haydn Perrett (LD) 117

• Stuart Taylor (C) 585

Lab hold - Maj 683. Turnout 27.6pc.

Catton Grove:

• Eve Collishaw (C) 703

• Alexander Findlow (LD) 111

• Judith Ford (G) 331

• GAIL HARRIS (L) 1036

• Paul Holmes (C) 629

• Tony Park (G) 312

• MIKE STONARD (L) 978

• Leigh Tooke (LD) 124

L hold and L gain from C (one seat was a by-election triggered by L resignation). Turnout 28.1pc.

Crome:

• *DAVID BRADFORD (L) 1272

• James Cross (LD) 125

• Jessica Lancod-Frost (C) 288

• Christine Way (G) 273

L hold - Maj 984. Turnout 28.5pc.

Eaton:

• Susan Curran (G) 379

• Antony Little (C) 947

• *JUDITH LUBBOCK (LD) 1820

• Geraldine Waring (L) 677

LD hold - Maj 1173. Turnout 52.1pc.

Lakenham:

• Nick Bishop (G) 361

• Steve Emmens (UKIP) 215

• *David Fairbairn (LD) 658

• PATRICK MANNING (L) 1149

• Mathew Morris (C) 135

L gain from LD - Maj 491. Turnout 34.9pc

Mancroft:

• LUCY HOWARD (G) 1077

• Marion Maxwell (L) 943

• Simon Nobbs (LD) 207

• Oliver Watson (C) 288

Greens hold - Maj 134. Turnout 31.1pc.

Mile Cross:

• Richard Edwards (G) 409

• *DEBORAH GIHAWI (Lab) 1,019

• Oscar Pinnington (C) 297

• Ian Williams (LD) 134

Lab hold - Maj 610. Turnout 24.1pc.

Nelson:

• Kate Atkins (LD) 173

• Alexandra Davies (C) 249

• Stuart Goodman (Lab) 697

• DAVID ROGERS (G) 1644

Greens hold - Maj 947. Turnout 36.6pc.

Sewell

• KEVIN BARKER (Lab) 990

• Anthony Barton (C) 332

• Howard Jago (G) 700

• Chris Thomas (LD) 123

Lab hold - Maj 290. Turnout 27.8pc.

Thorpe Hamlet:

• Jeremy Hooke (LD) 260

• BEN PRICE (G) 1111

• Stefan Rose (C) 407

• Tony Waring (L) 792

G hold - Maj 218. Turnout 31.8pc.

Town Close:

• Mark Johnston (LD) 254

• PAUL NEALE (G) 1333

• Guy Owen (C) 481

• John Sailing (L) 818

G hold - Maj 515. Turnout 33.6pc.

Wensum:

• NEIL BLUNT (G) 1386

• CAROLINE BRIMBLECOMBE (G) 1276

• Samuel Earl (L) 1012

• Hannah Gascoigne (C) 196

• Jess Hallybone (LD) 91

• Simon Harrison (C) 189

• Vaughan Thomas (L) 1039

• Helen Whitworth (LD) 78

G hold and G hold (one seat was a by-election triggered by G resignation). Turnout 33.1pc.

University:

• *BRENDA ARTHUR (L) 1153

• Thomas Cannon (C) 247

• Robert Laird (G) 493

• Andrew Wright (LD) 129

Lab hold - Maj 660. Turnout 26.2pc.