1.56pm: And that's more or less it for today. It's a significant day for those seeking greater freedoms in China, as well as, arguably, for the government in Beijing, which showed how economic muscle can have the tangible impact of scaring away ambassadors from the ceremony. Thanks again to Tania and Jon for their contributions.

1.54pm: I've been chatting again to Jon Henley, who was inside Oslo's city hall throughout. He talks me through a simple, moving ceremony.

Note: to listen in full turn off the auto-refresh tool at the top of the page.

1.40pm: There's been a lively debate in the comments section on whether Julian Assange should get the nod next year. Well oddly enough, some people in Beijing (as well as Moscow) have been thinking the same thing, albeit perhaps out of mischief.

On our Wikileaks live blog Matthew Weaver has posted this:

The China Media Project reports

It was an editorial in Beijing Daily, the official Party mouthpiece of the Beijing city leadership, criticizing the Nobel Peace Prize as a "tool of Western values and ideology," and snidely suggesting that this year's prize be given instead to Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.

Here's part of its translation of what the paper said:

If we want to talk about someone who is now a figure in the global spotlight, then who, if not Julian Assange? The founder of the Wikileaks website has been the subject of a worldwide manhunt by Western nations led by the United States, and all because he wanted to release a number of secrets that could not be spoken. Based on what we know, Assange, who was arrested in London on December 7, will have to face a two-year jail term . . . Assange's misfortunes tell us that the freedom of speech that America advocates is not an absolute freedom, that it is a matter of kind and degree, and that it has its limits. Ordinarily, if you say vicious things about the American government, talk about its problems, or even openly critical the American government, this is nothing very remarkable. But this time Assange has dared expose the truth, airing out before the world a number of things and remarks that the American government wouldn't dare make public, make transparent or share with others — and this has stepped over the line of America's freedom of expression. And the worldwide manhunt [for Assange] is no surprise.

1.16pm: And that's the end of the ceremony. The commentary on the webcast explains that it usually concludes with Norway's king and queen, Harald and Sonja, congratulating the winner, something which clearly can't happen this time.

That was an extremely moving even, and pitched very well: not a condemnation of China but a celebration of the life of one very brave man whose name and actions are now, thanks to the Nobel committee, known worldwide.

1.10pm: Ullman finishes, and the audience stands to applaud. If the emotional pitch wasn't already weepy enough we now get the children's choir of the Norwegian National Opera. Children's choirs are, we're told, a favourite of Liu, who sees them as a symbol of hope for the future. There won't be a dry eye in the house soon.

1.06pm: As Ullman reaches the section of Liu's speech in which he talks, extremely movingly, about his love for his wife, the camera pans to a young woman in the audience - either the US film actor Anne Hathaway or her doppelganger – wiping away a tear. It's very, very powerful stuff. You get the feeling this address will only become better known as the years pass.

12.48pm: And now we have Liv Ullman, reading Liu's increasingly famous "I have no enemies" court address. I reprinted some of this at 10.33am, and as I mentioned there, you can read a version of it here.

Even if you've seen the text previously, hearing it read out, slowly and gravely, by Ullman at the ceremony is very moving. Jagman likened Xiu to Nelson Mandela in his speech and the dissident's philosophy does sound similar at times:

I have no enemies, and no hatred.

12.41pm: As we hear some traditional Chinese music, followed by some Elgar, here's a brief summary of some of the other international reaction today.

• Navi Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

[I hope China will] come to recognise the positive contribution peaceful advocates like Liu Xiaobo can make to China's development... I want to say how dismayed I am by recent restrictions that China has placed on an ever widening circle of associates of Liu Xiaobo and activists and other critics.

• Noriyuki Shikata, a spokesman for the Japanese prime minister's office

We have always sent our ambassador to attend the Nobel Peace Prize. We of course think that it is a very important reward.

• India's Foreign Minister, S.M. Krishna

This is not a bilateral question... This is a function arranged by the Nobel foundation.

• Pakistan foreign ministry spokesman Abdul Basit

The politicisation of the Nobel Peace Prize for the purposes of interference in the domestic affairs of states is not only contrary to the recognised principles of inter-state conduct but also a negation of the underlying spirit conceived by the founder of the prize.

• Vietnam foreign ministry spokeswoman Nguyen Phuong Nga

We hope that the Nobel Peace Prize can be given to deserving organisations and individuals, and not be used for political goals.

• Taiwan's President Ma Ying-jeou

Concern for human rights does not distinguish between nationalities and borders

.

12.39pm: After another standing ovation Jagland announces that because neither Liu or any family members can attend today the Nobel citation and medal will be placed in an empty chair. He makes the short walk across the stage to the blue silk-upholstered seat, next to his own, and places the items down, without ceremony. Again, it is simple and straightforward but a hugely powerrful image.

12.35pm: Jagland ends his address with a rousing call to see Liu as a pointer to a better future for China, and takes a not-too subtle swipe at boycotting nations, referring to "some political leaders focusing only on their short-term political interest".

He ends:

[Liu's] views will, in the long run, strengthen China. We express to him and China our very best wishes for the years ahead.

12.30pm: I've just had a chat with Tania, who has braved the cold the take in the scene outside Liu's former home near to central Beijing where, until recently, his wife, Liu Xia, was under house arrest. You'll hear that she suddenly breaks off the convesation – Tania called back to assure me that she hadn't been bundled into a police van but had to investigate some sudden police activity.

Note: to listen in full turn off the auto-refresh tool at the top of the page.

12.16pm: The cereemony isn't going to make the Chinese government any more happy. Jagland says that Liu, from prison, told his wife he wants his prize "dedicated to the lost souls of 4 June", that is those who died on Tiananmen Square in 1989. Jagland adds, to yet more applause:

It is indeed a pleasure for us to fulfill his wish.

12.11pm: Here's some more of the speech. Jagland is now discussing earlier occasions when winners were unable to attend, or governments were outraged. I should mention that I'm taking the transcript from Reuters, rather than typing at huge speed:

There have been a number of previous occasions when the laureate has been prevented from attending. This has in fact been the case with several awards which have proved in the light of history to have been most significant and honourable...

There was a great deal of trouble in 1935, when the committee gave the award to Carl von Ossietzky. Hitler was furious, and prohibited all Germans from accepting any Nobel Prize... Ossietzky did not come to Oslo, and died a little over a year later.

There was considerable outrage in Moscow when Andrei Sakharov received his prize in 1975. He, too, was prevented from receiving the award in person. He sent his wife. The same thing happened to Lech Walesa in 1983. The Burmese authorities were furious when Aung San Suu Kyi received the Peace Prize in 1991. Once again, the laureate could not come to Oslo.

In 2003, Shirin Ebadi received the Nobel Peace Prize. She came. Much could be said of the reaction of the Iranian authorities, but the Iranian ambassador did in fact attend the ceremony...

The point of these awards has of course never been to offend anyone. The Nobel committee's intention has been to say something about the relationship between human rights, democracy and peace. And it has been important to remind the world that the rights so widely enjoyed today were fought for and won by persons who took great risks. They did so for others. That is why Liu Xiaobo deserves our support today.

Cue more applause. He continues:

Although none of the committee's members has ever met Liu, we feel that we know him. We have studied him closely over a long period of time.

12.07pm: The Norwegian Nobel committee chairman, Thorbjoern Jagland, has begun speaking:

We regret that the laureate is not present here today. He is in isolation in a prison in northeast China. Nor can the laureate's wife Liu Xia or his closest relatives be here with us. No medal or diploma will therefore be presented here today. This fact alone shows that the award was necessary and appropriate. We congratulate Liu Xiaobo with this year's peace prize.

The entire hall stands to applaud, for some minutes.

12.02pm: We begin with music: a pianist and (I think) a soprano with something from Grieg's Peer Gynt. To the side of the stage is a huge photograph of Liu Xiaobo. As the camera pans round you get a glimpse, on a slightly raised row of chairs to the right of the stage, one empty seat, near the end of the row. It's a hugely understated but very powerful image.

11.59am: The official website's live web coverage of the ceremony has just started, with commentary in English. Norway's king and queen have just pulled up in their limousine. Now comes a trumpet fanfare as they walk in to the city hall. It's regal stuff.

Tania Branigan Photograph: Sarah Lee for the Guardian

11.54am: Tania in Beijing has been rounding up restrictions on foreign media outlets in China ahead of the ceremony:

The Chinese government is strictly controlling access to unsanctioned information about Liu Xiaobo: the websites of the BBC, CNN and the Norwegian state broadcaster are currently blocked, for example. The authorities tend to control video and Chinese-language news much more strongly than information in English, which can be understood by far fewer people in China.

Satellite feeds of the BBC and CNN – available mainly in hotels and housing compounds with large expat populations – are also cutting out when Liu or the Nobel is mentioned, several people report. I am also told that one state-owned hotel has simply pulled the plug on feeds of international news channels.

Ever-inventive Chinese internet users began using the word "empty chair" on domestic microblogs to evade restrictions on discussions today – a reference to the seat that will be placed on the platform at the ceremony as a symbol of Liu and his family's inability to attend. Some references to that phrase appear to be being scrubbed by censors.

Well-known blogger Wen Yunchao suggested on Twitter (blocked on the mainland but still used by those who can leap over the Great Firewall) that users should take a picture of an empty chair near them and post that instead.

"Everyone has an empty chair. It is at the award ceremony of Xiaobo's, it is by the dining table of [jailed activist] Zhao Lianhai's family. If we only watch, then one day it may appear by the dining table of your family as well," he wrote.

Tania Branigan Photograph: Sarah Lee for the Guardian

11.33am: Another update from Tania in Beijing.

Pu Zhiqiang, a well known rights lawyer based in Beijing, observes: "If there is nobody accepting the award, it's going to be the shame and humiliation of the Communist Party, not the shame of the prize winner."

He added: "The government's sentence on Mr Liu was to scare him and us... The government knows it is losing its image and credibility so it fears its lies will be exposed to the public."

Pu was detained for three days following the announcement of the prize, then put under surveillance for several weeks. "Those people told me they will be with me from 9 to 11 December. Actually, right now, some people are with me," he said.

11.32am: Speaking of Twitter, this is from Channel 4 News' Lindsey Hilsum, also in Oslo.

11.27am: If you're following the story on Twitter, it seems that the tag of choice has settled on #emptychair. Some users have even replaced their Twitter icon with a photo of said object.

I've been speaking to the Guardian's Jon Henley, standing in the freezing cold outside Oslo's city hall as the various ambassadors' cars pull up for the ceremony. He talks me through what will be happening.

Note: to listen in full turn off the auto-refresh tool at the top of the page.

Tania Branigan Photograph: Sarah Lee for the Guardian

10.55am: More from Tania in Beijing:

A rare sign of dissent? Tibetan writer and blogger Woeser @degewa) has tweeted a picture of a banner congratulating Liu Xiaobo that she says was taken at Zhongnan University in Hunan province. The Guardian has been unable to verify that – it's not clear from the picture itself where or when it was taken.

The sign is partially obscured in the picture but appears to read: "[Liu Xiao]bo awarded 2010 Nobel peace prize... Chinese people's pursuit of democratic politics."

10.47am: So who will be there?

The latest tally seems to be that of the 65 countries with embassies in Oslo, 46 have accepted invitations. In all, about 1,000 people will be in Oslo's city hall for the presentation of the award, worth about £900,000 to the winner, among them Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the US House of Representatives. It's worth at this point recalling the somewhat Orwell-esque language used by Beijing's foreign ministry spokeswoman, Jiang Yu, in re-stating China's position:

We hope those countries that have received the invitation can tell right from wrong, uphold justice.

10.42am: The foreign secretary, William Hague, has put out a statement to mark International Human Rights Day, including this:

We remember in particular Liu Xiaobo, who has been awarded the Nobel peace prize but is imprisoned in China, and we call again for his release.

10.33am: At today's ceremony, Liu will be officially represented by the Norwegian action Liv Ullman. She will read the statement Liu gave to the court during his subversion trial, on 23 December last year. The hugely eloquent, moving address has previously been reproduced on our Comment is Free site, but here's a taster:



I stand by the belief I expressed 20 years ago in my hunger strike declaration – I have no enemies, and no hatred. None of the police who monitored, arrested and interrogated me, the prosecutors who prosecuted me, or the judges who sentence me, are my enemies. While I'm unable to accept your surveillance, arrest, prosecution or sentencing, I respect your professions and personalities. This includes the prosecution at present: I was aware of your respect and sincerity in your interrogation of me on 3 December. For hatred is corrosive of a person's wisdom and conscience; the mentality of enmity can poison a nation's spirit, instigate brutal life and death struggles, destroy a society's tolerance and humanity, and block a nation's progress to freedom and democracy. I hope therefore to be able to transcend my personal vicissitudes in understanding the development of the state and changes in society, to counter the hostility of the regime with the best of intentions, and defuse hate with love. I firmly believe that China's political progress will never stop, and I'm full of optimistic expectations of freedom coming to China in the future, because no force can block the human desire for freedom. China will eventually become a country of the rule of law in which human rights are supreme. I'm also looking forward to such progress being reflected in the trial of this case, and look forward to the full court's just verdict – one that can stand the test of history. Ask me what has been my most fortunate experience of the past two decades, and I'd say it was gaining the selfless love of my wife, Liu Xia. She cannot be present in the courtroom today, but I still want to tell you, my sweetheart, that I'm confident that your love for me will be as always. Over the years, in my non-free life, our love has contained bitterness imposed by the external environment, but is boundless in afterthought. I am sentenced to a visible prison while you are waiting in an invisible one. Your love is sunlight that transcends prison walls and bars, stroking every inch of my skin, warming my every cell, letting me maintain my inner calm, magnanimous and bright, so that every minute in prison is full of meaning. But my love for you is full of guilt and regret, sometimes heavy enough to hobble my steps. I am a hard stone in the wilderness, putting up with the pummeling of raging storms, and too cold for anyone to dare touch. But my love is hard, sharp, and can penetrate any obstacles. Even if I am crushed into powder, I will embrace you with the ashes.

10.05am: Tania Branigan has been looking over the reaction to today's prize in China's domestic media. You won't be surprised to know that it's angry:

Tania Branigan Photograph: Sarah Lee for the Guardian

One piece, in the popular nationalist tabloid the Global Times, is headlined: "Today's Oslo – a centre of an evil cult".

It adds: "A farce that puts China on trial is underway in Oslo… A Chinese criminal named Liu Xiaobo is being honored today at a grand award ceremony…It's unimaginable that such a farce, the like of which is more commonly seen in cults, is being staged on the civilized continent of Europe."

The English version can be read here.

Another commentary in the People's Daily – the official Communist Party newspaper – argues: "The Nobel peace prize has clearly become a tool of western political forces... A few westerners…[wish] to destroy China's development; this is clearly an insult to democracy."

On the China Radio International site, an article warns: "The Nobel peace prize… is attacking China now; tomorrow it may be attacking other developing countries and non-western countries."

9.52am: Time for a bit of background:

• Tania Branigan recounts Liu's background, and his formative moments during the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests.

• A brief film by Tania and Dan Chung on the background to today's prize.

• A roundup of the crackdown on foreign news websites in China ahead of the ceremony.

• From midday UK time you can watch a live webcast of the ceremony on the Nobel website.

• A BBC backgrounder on other occasions when Nobel peace laureates have been unable to collect the prize in person. Who were they? Aung San Suu Kyi in 1991; Lech Walesa in 1983; Andrei Sakharov in 1975; Carl von Ossietzky in 1935.

9.45am: Tania Branigan in Beijing has been keeping track – as far as is possible – on the pre-prize ceremony crackdown on other dissidents, described as the harshest in China in recent years:

Tania Branigan Photograph: Sarah Lee for the Guardian

Amnesty International says approaching 300 people have been detained, placed under surveillance or harassed in other ways. That pressure is intensifying, say campaigners.

The China Human Rights Defenders network

reports that many more people have been taken away overnight. They include Zhang Zuhua, a co-drafter of Charter 08; he was previously under a form of house arrest, but CHRD says he was abducted on the street by security officers last night.

A well-known human rights lawyer, Teng Biao, tweeted last night: "The police got me just after I had given four classes in uni. They told me that I need to be watched in Yanqing [a county in surburban Beijing], from now until the 12th. They were very civilized this time, no black hood or anything."

Others have had internet access cut off or their mobile phone service restricted.

This time the crackdown focuses more on dissidents and activist, whereas previous drives – such as that before the Olympics – also attempted to remove petitioners, people seeking to bring grievances about local officials to central authorities.

That may be why a small group of petitioners were able to (very briefly) protest outside United Nations offices in Beijing this morning, according to ITV correspondent @anguswalkeritv. He says they were soon driven away in a coach. The gathering seemed to be focusing on Human Rights Day rather than Liu.



Rumours of protestors outside the Norwegian embassy appear to be untrue, however. The rumours did not specify whether the gathering was of people opposing or supporting the award to Liu.

9.43am: Before we go on any further, a brief news update: one of the countries which had agreed to boycott the ceremony under Chinese pressure, Serbia, has this morning reversed its decision. AP writes:

Serbia has reversed its decision to boycott the Nobel peace prize ceremony honoring imprisoned Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo after facing sharp criticism from the EU and human rights activists at home.

The government said Friday it is sending Ombudsman Sasa Jankovic to the ceremony "in response to the expectations" of the Serbian public.

9.26am: In Oslo today, for the first time in 74 years, the Nobel peace prize will be not be actually be handed to anyone during the annual awards ceremony. There will instead be an empty chair in the city hall in place of the recipient, the Chinese writer and pro-democracy activist Liu Xiaobo.

Liu is serving 11-year jail term sentence on subversion charges. Some previous peace prizes have been collected by family members – Andrei Sakharov's wife attended the 1975 ceremony. To prevent this, China has placed supporters of Liu, including his wife, Liu Xia, under house arrest.

China's government, perhaps even by its standards, has been bullish in the face of international criticism, arm-twisting another 18 countries to boycott today's event, among them Russia and Pakistan. It has also launched one of the most severe crackdowns in years on other dissidents, placing an unknown number under house arrest or cutting off their communications, and preventing others from travelling.

The ceremony takes place at 1pm Oslo time, midday in the UK. I'll be getting contributions from Tania Branigan in Beijing and John Henley in Oslo. Join us for what should be a fascinating few hours.