Thousands of demonstrators marched through central London Saturday to demonstrate against the visit to Britain of Pope Benedict XVI, dpa reported.
"Pope protects paedophile priests," and "The pope is wrong - put a condom on" were among the banners held up by marchers as they made their way from Hyde Park Corner to Downing Street, the seat of the British government.
Organizers of the Protest the Pope alliance said they expected 10,000 to join the march, but other estimates were lower.
"The days of popes are over. We are no longer listening to religious leaders - we get our morality from other places," said Terry Sanderson, president of the National Secular Society.
Just hours earlier, in a sermon at a mass in Westminster Cathedral, the pope apologized for the child sex abuse scandal in the Roman Catholic Church and expressed "deep sorrow" for victims of abuse by priests.
"The pope keeps apologizing for the failings of everyone but himself," said gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell.