We usefollowingwithoutthe+ noun phrase to mean ‘after’, ‘in response to’ or ‘as a result of’:
Followingthe bad election results of May 8th, the Prime Minister has appointed three new ministers.
Followinga general strike in 1933, he fled the country and went to South America.
We usethe followingwith a noun. It means ‘the next’:
They only stayed at the hotel one night and left earlythe followingmorning.
We went out on the boat. The sea was really rough andthefollowinghour was the worst in my short life.
We also usethe followingwithout another noun to introduce things or people which we then list:
I’m afraid I can’t eat any ofthe following: tomatoes, cucumber, onions and cabbage.
The followinghave helped me with this book of photographs: David Jones, Gill Farmer, Martin Weekes and Anthony Gray.