Issue 51 October/November 2011 £4.75 Agents hold key to the best artistes By Christina Eccles FESTIVAL organisers have been advised to form trustworthy relation- ships with booking agents to ensure they secure the most relevant artistes for their events. A panel of organisers and agents joined forces for a conference at London’s South Bank Centre to share top tips with delegates looking to book acts for festivals. Among the speakers was John Empson, organiser of the annual Eden Sessions at Cornwall attraction The Eden Project. And he said that for the relationship between organisers and agents to work, it is important to establish what acts will fit well with the event you are staging. He explained: “You have to build that level of trust with an agent and establish does the show work for the artiste. “It’s also about knowing your region and audience. Cornwall has a very different audience to London. “You have to establish a strong identity, be committed and hold your nerve. Then it’s easy to tell agents what’s great about your event.” Organiser of Leefest, Lee Denny was also on the panel and he added the team behind his festival would never pay vast amounts of money for world famous headline acts – instead preferring to focus on up and coming bands. He added: “We don’t want to go boom and bust. Strong brand identi- ty is important to us, not headline artistes. We have a very modest amount of money we can throw at headliners. “We have a core group who come to us who love the event. I’m in favour of start small and grow from there.” Glastonbury booker Martin Elbourne – who also works on festi- vals including Guilfest and Jersey Live – added: “The hardest thing for us is saying no to people. Everyone wants to play at the festival. Friday is the worst day at Glastonbury because the newcomers stick to the main two stages. After that they realise there is another festival out there and go and look at different acts.” The panel, which also included Anke Link from CODA Agency and Paula Henderson who books acts for the WOMAD festival, advised a good way to get to know agents is to invite them to come and look around your event and see how it could fit with the artistes they work with. Festivals report a great year MANY of the UK’s most popu- lar independent festivals have reported a great year – with some selling out for the first time and others at record speed. AIF members Secret Garden Party, Camp Bestival, Green Man, Creamfields and Bestival all sold out this year, alongside boutique festivals Kendal Calling and End of the Road which all sold out in record time. Womad also had a 30 per cent increase in sales over last year. AIF co-founder Ben Turner said: "In what is clearly a troublesome year for the UK in general, it is incredible that so many of the independent festivals have sold out or had record years for ticket sales. “I think it shows that people are finding warmth and inspi- ration from the more creative end of the festival sector. “The love being put in by our promoters is being sent back by consumers voting with their feet." ■ How did your festival do this year? Let us know by emailing [email protected] or contacting our editorial team on 01226 734463. This year’s Bestival was the best yet, according to organisers who are already looking to next year. Audiences were treated to sets from, among oth- ers, Kelis (pictured), The Cure and Bjork and pro- moter Rob da Bank said this year’s acts provided some of the most incredible performances ever seen at the show. Early bird tickets are now on sale for Bestival 2012, available via a payment plan which lets festivalgoers spread the cost.
Transcript
Issue 51 October/November 2011 £4.75
Agents holdkey to thebest artistesBy Christina Eccles
FESTIVAL organisers have beenadvised to form trustworthy relation-ships with booking agents to ensurethey secure the most relevant artistesfor their events.
A panel of organisers and agentsjoined forces for a conference atLondon’s South Bank Centre to sharetop tips with delegates looking tobook acts for festivals.
Among the speakers was JohnEmpson, organiser of the annualEden Sessions at Cornwall attractionThe Eden Project.
And he said that for the relationshipbetween organisers and agents towork, it is important to establishwhat acts will fit well with the eventyou are staging. He explained: “Youhave to build that level of trust withan agent and establish does the showwork for the artiste.
“It’s also about knowing your regionand audience. Cornwall has a verydifferent audience to London.
“You have to establish a strongidentity, be committed and hold yournerve. Then it’s easy to tell agentswhat’s great about your event.”
Organiser of Leefest, Lee Dennywas also on the panel and he added
the team behind his festival wouldnever pay vast amounts of money forworld famous headline acts – insteadpreferring to focus on up and comingbands.
He added: “We don’t want to goboom and bust. Strong brand identi-ty is important to us, not headlineartistes. We have a very modestamount of money we can throw atheadliners.
“We have a core group who come tous who love the event. I’m in favourof start small and grow from there.”
Glastonbury booker MartinElbourne – who also works on festi-vals including Guilfest and JerseyLive – added: “The hardest thing forus is saying no to people. Everyonewants to play at the festival. Friday isthe worst day at Glastonbury becausethe newcomers stick to the main twostages. After that they realise there isanother festival out there and go andlook at different acts.”
The panel, which also includedAnke Link from CODA Agency andPaula Henderson who books acts forthe WOMAD festival, advised a goodway to get to know agents is to invitethem to come and look around yourevent and see how it could fit withthe artistes they work with.
Festivalsreport agreat yearMANY of the UK’s most popu-lar independent festivals havereported a great year – withsome selling out for the firsttime and others at recordspeed.
AIF members Secret GardenParty, Camp Bestival, GreenMan, Creamfields and Bestivalall sold out this year, alongsideboutique festivals KendalCalling and End of the Roadwhich all sold out in recordtime. Womad also had a 30 percent increase in sales over lastyear.
AIF co-founder Ben Turnersaid: "In what is clearly a troublesome year for the UK ingeneral, it is incredible that so many of the independentfestivals have sold out or had record years for ticketsales.
“I think it shows that peopleare finding warmth and inspi-ration from the more creativeend of the festival sector.
“The love being put in by ourpromoters is being sent back byconsumers voting with theirfeet."
� How did your festival do thisyear? Let us know by [email protected] or contacting our editorial team on 01226734463.
This year’s Bestival was the best yet, according toorganisers who are already looking to next year.Audiences were treated to sets from, among oth-ers, Kelis (pictured), The Cure and Bjork and pro-moter Rob da Bank said this year’s acts providedsome of the most incredible performances everseen at the show. Early bird tickets are now onsale for Bestival 2012, available via a paymentplan which lets festivalgoers spread the cost.
THE Projection Studio wowed thecrowds at the Edinburgh MilitaryTattoo by beaming spectacularvisuals on to the walls of the city’shistoric castle.
The Royal Navy was the Tattoo'slead service this year, so many ofthe visual materials related to thesea – including giant sea dragons,
fishing boats, shipwrecks and richselection of aquatic life and history.
The Tattoo had a new chief exec-utive and producer, BrigadierDavid Allfrey, who embraced theimpact that can be created byusing large format projections atan event. The Projection Studio’sRoss Ashton said: "Working with
David has been refreshing and veryinvigorating. He has brought a newdirection and energy to the wholeperformance, and really appreci-ates what high technical produc-tion values can bring to the showand make the whole guest experi-ence so much more special andmemorable.”
Tattoo crowds wowed by visuals
Event to mark Titanic anniversary By Christina Eccles
A SPECTACULAR free event will takeover the streets of Liverpool nextApril to commemorate the 100thanniversary of the sinking of theTitanic.
Leading street theatre companyRoyal De Luxe (RDL) will produce a ALittle Girl Giant, working withLiverpool City Council to pull togeth-er an extravaganza to welcome thegiant, which has only been seen oncebefore in the UK when she wowed1.5m people in London at the Sultan’sElephant event in 2006.
Over the weekend an event – themost complex the city has everstaged – will take over Liverpool,telling a story inspired by the Titanic,which is set to attract hundreds ofthousands of visitors.
The collaboration is the latestinvolving Liverpool City Council andexceptional artists, following the suc-cess of La Machine, which took overthe city in 2008 by bringing LaPrincesse (a 50 foot spider) to thestreets.
In July, 3D experts The Macula fromthe Czech Republic also transformedthe Liver Building by projectingimages on to it, marking its cente-nary.
Director of Culture Liverpool, ClaireMcColgan said: “One of the majorsuccesses of our European Capital ofCulture year was filling the pro-gramme with moments of sheermagic, bringing together thousandsof visitors and residents, sparking theimagination and getting people talk-ing about art and culture.
“As a city, we put on exceptional
free events and no matter what walkof life you’re from, you can experi-ence something which transports youto another world – this is what greatart achieves.
“There is still a massive appetite forthese boundary-pushing events, andas events don’t come much biggerthan the Sea Odyssey we know it willonce again thrust Liverpool into thecultural spotlight.
“This is a human story of love toldin giant form and it won’t just engagethe city, but will capture the imagina-tion of the nation. And I’m sure, justas with The Sultan’s Elephant, people will talk about it for years tocome.”
Liverpool is one of five Titanic citiesholding events in 2012, alongsideBelfast, Southampton, Cherbourgand Co. Cork.
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By Christina Eccles
THE founders of a music festival inMalawi have revealed the secrets oforganising a successful event abroad.
Tom Porter, who works alongsidefounder Will Jameson to deliver theLake of Stars festival, spoke to dele-gates at a conference in Londonorganised by the Association ofIndependent Festivals and the BritishCouncil.
As part of his talk, he revealed moreabout how sponsorship and stake-holders fit in to the festival and howthe event as a whole benefits thelocal community.
Tom said: “Our mission is to pro-mote Malawian tourism and cultureand challenge people to see thecountry differently.
“We talk to sponsors not about putting a banner up for three days at the festival but getting
involved year round.
“We believe the festival is a benefi-cial project and are booking beds inMalawi through our efforts – one bedbooked can feed a family of 10. It’snot just about arts and music. It’sabout the other projects that pluginto that, for example the local healthauthority had an outreach day at thefestival.”
The total cost of staging the festivalstands at about £300,000, so sponsorsare a key part of making it happen.
And Tom added it is important thatthose who get involved in the eventengage with festivalgoers and addvalue to the festival and the commu-nity rather than just lending theirname to it.
He added: “When we go to spon-sors, we have to be able to demon-strate shared value and that if theyget involved in our project, they willbenefit from our media coverage.
“We also have impact statistics andthe story of the festival engages peo-ple which helps.”
Tom also offered advice to anyother organisers who are looking toattract sponsors for their festival.
His tips included creating wrist-bands with logos on which are hand-ed out to festivalgoers and are anattractive option for brands, as wellas getting to know your audience wellenough to establish which brandswould fit well with their interests.
“We want to show that the develop-ment of the African continent can bedone by means other than handouts.
“We have had global media cover-age and people who have been to thefestival have said it is a lifetime expe-rience.
“We are giving people something totake away that is really special.”
Tom Porter, Lake of Stars festival
Music festival aims to changeperceptions about Malawi
Cyclistsdraw thecrowds inPeeblesTHOUSANDS of supporters filledPeebles High Street to get a closelook at the 96 riders and the largeaccompanying cavalcade at the startof the Tour of Britain.
Stuart Turner, events director forEventScotland, said the number ofcycling events taking place inScotland is growing each year andthe interest in the sport is increasingboth in participation and spectatornumbers.
He added: “From the local cyclingclub leading out the riders to the local traders with their windowdressing and ‘big breakfast’offers it seemed that everyone wasinvolved.
“This year saw the first ‘tour ride’participation event taking place inScotland which ran over the routethe weekend before.
“This development, together withthe welcome addition of a local exhibition criterium race and thebonus of having the overall start ofthe race this year, leads us to expectthat the event will bring an evengreater economic benefit to Scotland than the £0.88m it achievedin 2009.”
Mark Cavendish cycles to victory at theend of the first stage of the Tour or Britainat Dumfries.
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2 6
THE panel – Glastonbury’s BenChallis, founder of GlasgowburyPaddy Glasgow, co-founder of theEnd of the Road festival SofiaHaberg and WOMAD’s festivals andevents director Chris Smith took tothe stage at the Festival Visionariesmasterclass, organised by theBritish Council and Association ofIndependent Festivals.
The definition of ‘identity’ wasagreed to be everything that a festi-val presents to the outside world –from the acts, to the site, to thedecor and the food. Everythingwhich adds to the festivalgoers’experience of being at the event.
But for Chris, the idea of identitywas slightly different, as WOMADtakes place in a number of differentcountries around the world as wellhaving a UK event.
And he told delegates, that howthe brand is perceived in the UK isvery different to how people see itabroad.
He explained: “Our brand is bothan advantage and a disadvantage.Internationally the brand is seenquite differently to in the UK,where the perception of our brandis that we are a bunch of hippies ina field, swaying to world music.
“Our biggest market is the UK butour biggest problem is the UK
“The challenge we have is to get abrand that works internationallybecause we have a product thatworks internationally.
“[At each festival] We work inpartnership to make sure there is acore of the festival that is interna-tional and part of it that is local andunique to that event.”
Ben’s job as Glastonbury’s lawyerinvolves protecting the brand name
of one of the most famous festivalsin the world – something which isnot always easy.
He added: “12 years ago we regis-tered Glastonbury and GlastonburyFestivals as trademarks and thathas proved invaluable.
“Michael is very protective andwants to protect his festival. Wedon't advertise. People comebecause they want to come toGlastonbury.
“With Glastonbudget, we didn'tmind, but they had to make it clearthey weren't connected to us. Whencommercial companies try to useour name, we will take action.”
When it comes to artistes, thepanel agreed that they are not out
to secure big name acts. Insteadtheir brands are considered to beabout up and coming talent andfinding artistes which other festi-vals might not have.
Chris added: “We are the only fes-tival that makes the artistes cookfor the audience. Music and art arepart of our culture but food is verymuch a part of the experience. It'sabout the experience from theminute you enter to the minute youleave. It isn't about the headlineartistes.
“At WOMAD they don't expect tohave heard of the artistes. We aretrusted as a brand for people torespect the music we have put on.”
Sofia added: “We do have fanswho are always waiting to see whothe headliners are but we also havea hardcore audience – we sold1,000 tickets for next year in fivehours. We are very lucky that thereare enough people out there wholove what we love.”
Paddy, who has grownGlasgowbury in Northern Ireland toa 5,000 capacity event believes thekey to developing a strong festivalidentity is to love what you aredoing.
“Identity comes from being cre-ative and passionate about whatyou are doing. We are a rural townof 1,400 people and we bring 5,000people in so it's massive for thelocal economy.
“Identity for us is giving local peo-ple opportunities. For us, peopledon't expect big stars. They cometo see the stars of the future.”
A panel of festival organisers gathered in London to discuss the ups and downs of staging an event. Amongthe topics up for debate was how to develop a festival identity. Christina Eccles found out more.
How to create uniquefestival identity ...
The panel
‘Identity comes from being creative and passionate aboutwhat you are doing ...’
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07 Eagle Events 27/9/11 11:07 Page 1
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‘Technology willenhance eventsin next decade’By Dominic Musgrave
LIVE blogging, digital queue manage-ment and holographics are just someof the new technologies which willbecome the norm in events and con-ferences over the next 10 years,according to research from MeetBirmingham.
The Event City of the Future reportreveals how technology holds the key to making events more relevant,engaging and therefore able to deliver a tangible return on invest-ment.
It claims that in the next 10 years,technology will enhance not replaceevents and allow for greater interac-tion between delegates andexhibitors.
However, according to research, 80per cent of events organisers thinktechnology is not currently beingdeployed as effectively as it could bein corporate conferencing and eventsand 70 per cent of those believe it isdue to knowledge gap.
Ian Taylor, commercial director atMarketing Birmingham, which man-ages the Meet Birmingham pro-gramme, said: “This report shows asector that is undergoing a transfor-mation amid rapid advances in busi-ness technology and greater scrutinyof the purpose of events and meet-ings.
“It’s clear that the sector is notimmune from the current challenginglandscape, but the report shows that there is also consensus on the
priorities ahead.
“Closing the skills gap on technolo-gy and using it to engage will be critical to ensuring the industryremains a dynamic and significantdriver of the UK economy over thenext 10 years.”
As well as enhancing events, tech-nology also has a role to play in help-ing to deliver more efficient and costeffective events in light of tighteningbudgets.
The report revealed a keen aware-ness of cost, at a time when everyevent has to demonstrate its valuefrom attracting delegates rightthrough to delivering on the bottomline.
Event organisers said that deliveringan effective and tangible ROI is thekey success factor for the next 15years and 61 per cent believe atten-dance levels, new business leads andgenerating new contacts will be themost important measures of successfor their clients.
Ian added: “Making the time spentin face-to-face events as relevant,engaging and cost-effective as possi-ble will continue to be the key issuefor those hosting events and confer-ences, but by developing more of anunderstanding of how technology canbe deployed effectively, event organ-isers can use it to help organisationsmeet this challenge.”
Organisers of the White Rose Winter Music Festival have revealed this year’s line up ofperformers. Acts taking to the stage will include critically acclaimed soprano ClaireOrmshaw, pictured, tenor Nick Sales and winners of the Yorkshire’s Got Young Talent competition, Emma Hart and Ravi Patel. The festival takes place from November 17-19 atHarewood House.
Showsec has successfully completed the first of a five-year deal to provide event securityservices to Creamfields. The company won the contract following a competitive tenderand it builds on over a decade of successful working partnership with the festival’s organisers. Showsec director Mark Logan said: “The five year contract means that we canhave a truly joined-up approach with CI Events and Loud Sound. We’re not simply a security provider – we are part of the festival management team and as such can tweakmethods and processes year-to-year, concentrate resources and allocate managementsolely to this project.”
BOLTON Arena has launched adownloadable brochure to highlightits events facilities to organisers.
Featuring images, floor plans, tech-nical information and details of thefacilities and event support on offer,the brochure enables organisers tovisualise exactly how their event willlook and run at the venue.
Marketing and events executiveStephanie Whittingham said: “Thebrochure offers event buyers andorganisers a clear picture of whatthey can expect when choosingBolton Arena as their venue. Ourexperience of hosting both large andsmall scale events is clearly demon-strated.”
Arena highlights events facilities
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Sense of communityfelt by festivalgoershighlighted in studyBy Christina Eccles
FESTIVALGOERS experience a sense of communitywhen attending events which they sometimesstruggle to find in everyday life, a new study hasclaimed.
Researchers from the universities of Bath,Birmingham and Southampton have studied howvisitors feel about their experiences at major eventsand also the effect which corporate branding has onthem.
One of the main things the study found was howimportant events like Glastonbury are to those whoattend them.
Dr Andrew Bengry-Howell from the NationalCentre for Research Methods at the University ofSouthampton explained: “Lots of people drew com-parisons between the sense of community theyencountered at a music festival, and the lack ofcommunity they encountered in their everydaylives.
“The experience of spending time with peoplewho share their interest in music and festivals, and,for some, the experience of camping, going to sleepand waking up with people that they perceive to belike them.
“Many also talked about festivals as somethingthat they waited all year for, which provided anescape from their otherwise stressful lives andhelped them to cope with the pressures of modern
day living.”The study also found that for many young people,
corporate branding and sponsorship of music festi-vals was not a major cause of concern.
In fact many visitors regarded it as a ‘necessaryevil’ which secured the future of their favouriteevents.
He added: “Despite becoming far more main-stream and corporate than prototypical festivals likeWoodstock, the Glastonbury festivals of the 1970s,and the early National Jazz Festivals or the late1950s/early 1960s, for many contemporary festival-goers today’s music festivals still evoke feelingsreminiscent of the ‘Summer of love’, and provide asense of freedom and belonging within the tempo-rary community that is produced on a music festi-val site.
“Our research found that few noticed or were con-cerned about corporate sponsorship or how theirconsumption choices were being constrained. Ifanything the involvement of well-known companiesand brands in music festivals had made theseevents seem less threatening and more accessible toa wide cross-section of people who identify withmainstream culture.
“People came to festivals partly for the music, butmostly for a whole experience, which enabled themto escape from their daily lives and, in the case ofevents like Glastonbury, temporarily disappear intoanother world, which resembled a modern utopia.”
Artist and tour management specialist Extreme MusicProduction is celebrating 10 years in business thisautumn. Founded by artist and tour manager GeorgeAllen, in the last 12 months EMP has represented actsincluding Marina and the Diamonds (pictured withGeorge), The Magic Numbers and Sophie Ellis-Bextor.He is also working on The Mission’s 25th anniversaryshows, having reformed the original members who havenot played together since 1990. George is already nowlooking to the future and how to build on the last 10years. He added: “I will continue to work hard, as I alwayshave, and look towards expanding the management andlabel side of the business over the next two years.”
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2 10 LOCAL AUTHORITY SPOTLIGHT
THE day organised by theBuckinghamshire team at AylesburyRugby Club was only surpassed insize by the official national one inEdinburgh.
Attracting a crowd of almost 10,000,it featured everything from a two-hour air display and fair to a magi-cian, demonstrations by celebritychef Richard Fox and two live musicstages that were headlined by boyband Blue.
Other performances at the 12-hourextravaganza included local brassbands, choirs, a Dame Vera Lynn trib-ute act and even a heavy metal band.Charities such as the Royal BritishLegion were also invited to exhibit.
Events and sponsorship officerHannah Ladlow told Main Event theday took a committee of 25, made upof representatives from all of thearmed forces and charities, almost ayear to organise.
She added: “It's the first thing thatourselves as a county council havereally been involved with from thestart and, previously we have justexhibited at the local communityshow and other similar events.
“We've always been involved withArmed Forces Day and are very keento contribute to it. Last year the LordLieutenant and chief executive askedus to put on a big event given that thecounty is the biggest defenceemployer in the country, whether it
be the two RAF bases or the companythat makes parts for the planes.
“It's no longer seen as a day ofremembrance nowadays, but moreabout a celebration. It also recognisesthe Territorial Army and the familiesof those serving today as well as theveterans.”
The event was the only other one aswell as Edinburgh to receive fundingfor the day from the Ministry ofDefence, while sponsors also playeda key part in the day. Sir Terry Wogan,deputy lieutenant of the county, paidBlue's fee.
Hannah added: “The rugby clubprovided the ideal venue becausealthough it is fairly central it is out oftown and there are six pitches as well
as surrounding fields that came inhandy for car parking.
“It was also the first time we reallyused Facebook and Twitter for anevent, and it proved to play a massivepart in making the day a massive suc-cess.
“We took it to the next level in theweek leading up to the day by regu-larly posting updates and photosfrom the venue. We got some greatcoverage on the back of it, both local-ly and nationally.
“The only issue we had on the daywas that Blue arrived 45 minutes late,which I'm sure is par for the coursefor a band, but it didn't stop me pac-ing around worriedly in front of acrowd of 200 screaming fans. We
Saluting a 12-hour extravaganza
weren't sure how popular they wouldbe, but we had girls travelling fromacross the country to see them.”
The team will not be holding anArmed Forces Day celebration nextyear, but a team of six, which includesthree apprentices, has been set up toorganise events to mark the Queen'sDiamond Jubilee and the Olympics.
Hannah added: "We gained a lot ofconfidence from the summer's eventand have put a team together to hosta series of community events such asstreet parties.
"Buckinghamshire will also host therowing at the Olympics and is wherethe Paralympics were born, which issomething we want to make the mostof.
"The three apprentices all have dif-ferent skills. One has the task ofdeveloping our website, Facebookand Twitter, another is full of ideasand the third is an organiser."
An event to celebrate Armed Forces Day proved not only to be thelargest a county council had ever held but also the second biggest ofits type nationwide. Dominic Musgrave reports ...
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THE technical director of a produc-tion company has revealed how heand colleagues helped to successfullydeliver a music festival in Croatia.
Whole Nine Yards Productions wascontracted to provide productionand overlay services to the OutlookFestival, which is split between FortPunta Christo – a 19th Century aban-doned fort – and a working harbourthat was especially cleared for theevent.
Playing host to nine principal musicstages and over 400 appearing artiststhe design, planning and coordina-tion of the festival was a complex
project, according to technical direc-tor Ben Price.
Ben was responsible for a crew ofover 200 and charged with the plan-ning, design, procurement and coor-dination of all overlay and technicalinfrastructure.
Planning began with him and sitemanagers Chris Sheppard and SamAndrews making the first of a num-ber of site visits to Pula to develop acomprehensive capital works pro-gramme to ensure that the venue wasfit for purpose and could safelyaccommodate the numbers.
One of the most challenging aspects
of the pre-production was the client’sdesire to use a portion of the Fort’smoat as an audience arena. Thisrequired massive ground-works andthe installation of structural overlayfor audience and artist access.
Ben said: “Delivering a nine stagefestival with such a high volume ofartists would be interesting anywherein the world but doing so at thisbeautiful, albeit hugely challengingsite required suppliers and crew ofthe very highest quality.
“Everybody we brought on boarddelivered to the top of the game tomake this a reality.”
Production companyovercomes challengesof Croatian festival
NEC looks toboost city’sevents offeringBIRMINGHAM-based Big Cat Grouphas been brought on board by TheNEC Group to enhance the city’sevents offering.
Having brought events such asBodies Revealed and TV smash hitCSI: The Experience to the UK, BigCat Group will utilise its range of con-tacts in Europe and the US to buildupon the Birmingham’s entertain-ment calendar.
CEO Nick Morgan said: “This is agreat opportunity to further improveBirmingham’s significance as aninternational entertainment destination. In recent years we haveseen millions of tourists flood to thecity to witness shows such as X-Factor, Britain’s Got Talent, Batman Live, Cirque de Soleil andmany more.
“Our role in this new venture will beto source global content and bring itto Birmingham. With the advance-ments in digital technology, theatreproduction and visual arts the possi-bilities for the city are endless.”
Business development director atthe NEC Chris Hartley added: “We’redelighted to be teaming up with BigCat. We know the entertainmentevents market place is an area of realopportunity for us and now with BigCat’s experience and knowledge inthis sector, we can actively target it.”
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2 12 THE BIG CHILL
CHILDREN and chilling out wereamong the priorities at this year’s BigChill, which celebrated its 17th yearwith another successful event.
Almost 300 artistes performedacross 10 stages against the backdropof Eastnor Castle Deer Park inHerefordshire, with headlinersincluding The Chemical Brothers andKanye West.
Melvin Benn, managing director ofpromoters Festival Republic, said:“This is our second year promotingThe Big Chill and it has been a greatopportunity to implement somechanges and improvements.
“There was a brilliant response toour improved and expanded familyarea ‘The Little Chill’, often at timesover the weekend as popular with theparents as it was the children.
“The Therapy and Chill field wasincreased in size and the treatmenttents were busier than ever, Big ChillRadio got its own stage, BBC SixMusic broadcast three shows livefrom site, and there were new addi-tions to the music on offer includingThe People’s Ear Stage, the psychedel-ic White Rabbit Lounge and TomMiddleton’s Sound Of The Cosmos,whilst classic parts of the festival,such as the Art Trail triumphantlyreturned in partnership with SaatchiOnline.”
Some of the first to arrive at theevent were the participants of theTour De Chill, a new charity bike rideto the festival which raised over£5000 for one of the official charitypartners, Kenyan Orphan Project.
The riders were among the luckyfestivalgoers who enjoyed music a
Big Chill continues to grow ...
day early this year, with James Blakeheadlining the first ever Thursdaynight Deer Park stage performance.
Melvin added: “Last year we wereable to bring bigger and higher pro-file acts to The Big Chill, such as MIAand Lily Allen who brought withthem a new wave of younger festival-goer. We’re pleased to see many ofthose faces return this year. We nowhave a broader and more diverse lineup reflecting a broader and morediverse audience, children, teenagers,adults, families, students and youngpeople alike.
“We worked hard to respect The BigChill’s history whilst bringing it to theforefront of the festival calendar.
“The event is often sited as ‘theoriginal boutique festival’ and we areconfident it will grow to becomeknown as one of the major players ofthe summer calendar. It has been aprivilege to enable the festival to con-tinue as its heritage and place within
the festival market is something webelieve is worth protecting.”
Pictures by Marc Sethi
UK sustainable first for CardiffCARDIFF’S Millennium Stadium hasbeen recognised as the UK’s first sus-tainable event stadium.
The venue has achieved BS8901compliance for its efforts in manag-ing the social, economic and environmental impact of stadiumevents.
Stadium manager Gerry Toms said:“The Millennium Stadium is theindustry leader for the sustainablemanagement of events and it is an
honour to receive the BS8901 certificate ahead of any other UK sta-dium.
“The standard is a fantastic achievement for a stadium which was designed and built over adecade ago without the innovativedesign elements in modern stadiaand demonstrates the huge strides taken by the organisation to improve its sustainable creden-tials.”
VisitEngland contract awardedPRESTON based events managementcompany, Glasgows, has won a threeyear contract to manage the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence.
The contract includes marketing,sponsorship acquisition, administer-ing the application and judgingprocesses as well as organising theprestigious annual awards ceremony.
Chairman Ron Glasgow said: “We
are really delighted to win the con-tract. The VisitEngland Awardsscheme is the gold standard forrecognising and rewarding excellencewithin English tourism. The awardsshowcase the very best that Englandoffers tourists, rewards participantsand drives up standards by providinginspirational models for othertourism businesses to follow.”
12 27/9/11 11:10 Page 1
Freedom 2011wows with theatre,dance and musicHULL’S Freedom Festival returned to the citywith a bang – with estimated crowds of75,000 people wowed by projects includingstreet theatre, dance and music.
Spaces across the city centre were takenover by artistes and performers includingcomedian Arthur Smith, music from CamilleO’Sullivan and the world premier of the HullFreedom Chorus.
Chief executive of Visit Hull and EastYorkshire Janet Reuben said: “Freedom 2011has been an overwhelming success for thecity of Hull. We have seen large crowds thoroughly enjoying everything on offer,businesses experiencing a high level ofdemand and a vibrancy and positive
atmosphere that any city would be envious of.”
Chief executive of Welcome to YorkshireGary Verity added: “Major events of thisnature are invaluable to the tourism industryand for all those associated businesses whichbenefit from the additional footfall.
“Everyone involved should be proud ofwhat they have achieved.”
Humberside Police have also praisedFreedom after the event maintained a wel-coming and family friendly atmospherethroughout the three days.
There were only two arrests connected with the event – a marked improvement on2010.
13 27/9/11 12:04 Page 1
2 14 BINGLEY MUSIC LIVE
OVER 15,000 people each day attend-ed this year’s Bingley Music Live,making it the event’s biggest year yet.
An action packed weekend saw per-formers such as Fun Lovin Criminals,Maximo Park, Chase and Status andEliza Doolittle take to the stage toentertain the crowds. A new chill outand family friendly area was alsointroduced this year, complete with asecond community focused stagewhich was powered by solar energy.
Festival manager Andrew Woodfrom the City of Bradford Metropoli-tan District Council told The MainEvent he was really pleased with howthis year’s festival went. He added: “Itwent really well and we sold out aweek in advance. We aren’t really afamily festival but for people who dobring families, the new area hadmore of a chilled out vibe.
“Before we have been more of a biggig in a field rather than a festival butnow we have provided other areasand this is something which will cer-tainly continue and develop.
“We can get 17,000 people into thevenue but we don’t want to get to thatnumber because then they have all
got to get out of Bingley, which wouldbe very demanding.”
The festival prides itself on beingaffordable, with a weekend ticketcosting just £35, and new for this yearwere camping areas, laid on by locallandowners which allowed guests toenjoy more of a festival experience.
“A private organisation did campingin Bingley and there were two camp-sites – one at the local rugby club andanother done by a local farmer. Wehad to work with them to get it rightfor residents because if not it couldjeopardise the event. They had to layout terms and conditions and makesure residents were kept informed.”
The team behind the event are nowgearing up for next year and Andrewadded they already have ideas aboutwhat they would like to see andartistes who could fit the bill.
The team behind the event – wherecontractors included LightmediaDisplays, Newburn Power, Pepper-mint Bars and AP Security – are nowgearing up for next year and Andrewadded they already have ideas aboutwhat they would like to see andartistes who could fit the bill.
Eliza Doolittle was among the performers at this year’s festival.Picture: Featureflash/Shutterstock.com
Action-packedfestival hasbiggest year
14 29/9/11 16:31 Page 1
15 - LMD 27/9/11 11:15 Page 1
2 16 FAIRPORT CROPREDY CONVENTION
AN unexpected road closure meantorganisers of Fairport’s CropredyConvention had to think on their feet.
The main route into the festival wasinterrupted due to road works, mean-ing that the team behind the festivalhad to implement a new traffic planto ensure visitors could still accessthe site with minimal disruption tolocal people.
A two-mile stretch of the A361 roadwas closed as part of the Banburyflood relief scheme and a section ofthe road between neighbouring vil-lage Williamscot and Junction 11 ofthe M40, which was due to re-open inJuly had been put back to October,which would affect the festival.
So to make sure everything wentahead as planned, the team behindthe event worked hard to get theword out before it started so festival-goers would know in advance whereto go.
Festival director Gareth Williamssaid: “The main road to us wasclosed, which was a bit concerning.But we had a good traffic manage-ment plan so we could email every-one details and advice. They all tooknote and there were no queues.”
Traffic updates were printed on thefestival’s website as well as on socialnetworking sites Facebook andTwitter, with festivalgoers beingadvised which ‘A’ roads to use ratherthan clogging up country lanes anddisrupting neighbouring villages.
Gareth added everything workedout well and he also told The MainEvent, this year was another good onefor the festival, which was particular-
ly important as next year they aregoing up against the Olympics.
He added: “People don’t like any-thing new, so we just do an oddtweak to make things better. Ouraudience is very discerning and veryloyal.
“We could get complacent but wewould never insult them by doingthat.
“The line up is our main feature, myjob is to make sure the audience isentertained.”
Sound – SSEStage and lights – Prism lightingVideo – CT LondonLocal crewing – StagecraftPower and water – Bounty EventsTrackway – Trac LtdFencing – Events SolutionsPR – Iconic MediaArtwork – Mick TooleHealth and safety – John SurshamAssociatesToilets, showers and cabins – Tim
Laughton Mobile Toilet HireSecurity – MJ Events SupportMerchandise – T Shirt and SonsTrucking – StardesBand Transportation – Vans For BandsTour Bus – Y-Not UsAccountancy – Jervis AssociatesClean Up – Banbury and AdderburyScoutsPrint services – Banbury LithoThames Valley PoliceSt John's Ambulance
Contractors’ list
Convention stays on track despite road closure
16 27/9/11 11:16 Page 1
How are plans shaping upfor this year's show?The plans for this year’s showare very promising and theteam is quietly optimistic butthere is no room for compla-cency.
What will there be for visitors to see and do?There are many new exhibitorsand products for visitors tosample at this year’s show.
What are you most lookingforward to this year?We are excited to see the manynew products and exhibitorsthat will be featured at thisyear’s event, which include thefollowing:� Tygit – new online ticketingsystem
� Team Extreme – new fourman show that includes amountain bike rider, inlineskater, BMX rider and scooterrider
� Master Climate Solutions –launch of XL5, a 17 kW heater
� Smiths Waste Management –launching an event recyclingservice
� Total Displays – showcasingthe X-Gloo Event Tent
� APT Skidata – launching tem-porary automated turnstile unit
� Pop-Up Banners – brandedparasols for corporate events
� Grumpy Joe’s – new wirelesscolour changing LED matrixdance floor, portagegames/skittle alley, portablefolding darts game and an allweather PVC flooring
� British Red Cross – newLandrover First Aid cycles
� PT Winchester – new loopedwebbing range for marqueemanufacturers and cover mak-ers that are weldable with noneed for eyelets
� Batmink Distribution – newrange of LED illuminated furni-ture (as featured in the RadioOne area at Glastonbury)
Have there been anychanges/new features added?The format works, so therehave been no changes this year.
Why do you think the showmaintains its popularity yearon year?The Showman’s Show hassomething for every type of vis-itor; for those organisers whoare planning a one off special
event, those that plan severalevents in one year and alsoexhibitors within other indus-tries looking for exhibitingproducts.
What makes it stand out from the crowd?Being staged outdoors, the
show allows exhibitors todisplay their products in theway they would at an eventand as a consequence thisformat encourages manysuppliers from areas of theevent industry to exhibitgiving visitors a comprehensiveshop window.
With the annualShowman’s Shownow just weeksaway, The MainEvent caught up with organiser Jeremy Lance tosee how plans are going for thisyear’s event ...
‘Something for every type of visitor’
17 27/9/11 12:41 Page 1
2 18 SHOWMAN’S SHOW PREVIEW
WINCANTON is one of the country’slargest logistic companies and offer afull suite of water services to anyevent, large or small, across the UK.
This summer they delivered morethan four million litres of water to avariety of events that include: The Big
Chill, The Great Dorset Steam Fair,Leeds Festival, Kendal Calling and VFestival.
Meet Mike Rowell and theWincanton Water Services team atThe Showman’s Show to discuss yourwater needs for events and festivals.
More than four million litres ofwater delivered this summer ...
18 27/9/11 15:06 Page 1
SHOWMAN’S SHOW PREVIEW 19
ESS Management are an event securi-ty and crowd management companyproviding high quality security solu-tions for a wide range of eventsaround the UK.
Their management team have over20 years’ experience working withinthe security industry; this hasinvolved managing some of thelargest events held in the country.
This experience also runs through-out the workforce, a large number ofwhom have worked together for thepast 10 years, ensuring our clientshave their high expectations met.
The services they provide, cover thewhole gamut of skills required at anevent.
They range from event safety stew-ards, response teams, pit crews rightthrough to customer care, searchteams and evidence gatherers. Theyrecognise that everyone has their own
skills and abilities and through thetraining process, people are hand-picked for the roles that best suitthem.
This then enables them to providethe best possible service to the client,whilst offering job satisfaction totheir team.
Their aim, is to ensure their clientscan get on with running a great eventwith the confidence that ESSManagement is maintaining the safe-ty and security of their customers, atall times.
This is achieved by meticulous plan-ning months prior to the event – thisinvolves site visits, planning meetingsand hours of preparing operationalorders and briefing documents.
This all means that the securityoperation for that event is not just apaste and copy exercise, but is pur-pose built from scratch.
High-quality security solutions
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2 20 SHOWMAN’S SHOW PREVIEW
SMITHS Event Management a divi-sion of Smiths' (Gloucester) providesevent managers with a completerecycling and waste collection servicein the UK.
Whatever the size of the event,indoor or outdoor, Smiths offers acomplete management solution toease the pressure of dealing with thequantity and variety of waste pro-duced over the duration of an event.
Smiths aim to recycle as much ofthe collected waste as possible andhelp to reduce the carbon footprint ofthe event. Smiths provide waste-spe-cific collection containers, will man-age the recycling and waste collec-tions at an event and clean up whenit is over.
Utilising their branded recyclingpoints, the Smiths team use site visi-bility to encourage visitors to depositwaste in the appropriate receptacles.Smiths' team monitor the bins atthese points to ensure they neveroverflow. They remove the filled bags
to a central point where a dedicatedRCV collection vehicle ships thewaste to Smiths' materials recyclingfacility in Gloucestershire.
With an objective to recycle 100 percent of the event waste, Smiths aim toimprove the carbon footprint of eachevent and ensure a better, cleanerenvironment for every visitor. In theirfirst full events season, Smiths haveseen impressive growth picking upcontracts with CLA Game Fair,Countryman Fairs and the Cheltenham Festivals amongst others.
James Herbert-Power of Smithssaid: “We have developed recyclingstations that can be placed in strate-gic points at each event. These havebeen enthusiastically received andmake it safe and easy for people torecycle their waste at your event. Wehave had excellent response andfeedback from event managers and Iam very excited about the next 12months.”
Recycling stations prove a hit
THE Lance family have welcomed anew addition to the team in time for this year’s Showman’s Show.
As the youngest member of thefamily, Johnny is no stranger to theshow and The Showman’s Directory,having been on the fringes of thecompany for as long as he can
remember and in recent years work-ing in an official capacity as a stew-ard at the event.
Joining Lance Show andPublications will give him the chanceto become more involved in the fami-ly business, as well as becomingmore acquainted with the outdoorevent industry.
New addition to Lance team
20 29/9/11 16:32 Page 1
21 Smiths 27/9/11 11:16 Page 1
2 22 SHOWMAN’S SHOW PREVIEW
ALISTAGE of Harlow has had a busyyear despite the constant depressiveeconomic news.
Again they have been involved in awide variety of different events andprojects throughout the period.These vary from award shows such asThe BAFTA’s and the British ComedyAwards, through to providing themain stage for Comic Relief at theBBC.
Festivals included, amongst others,the likes of Glastonbury, Cornburyand Womad, together with SummerSeason held at Somerset House.
This year also saw contracts for sup-plying a variety of equipment for asoon to be released film called ‘Jackthe Giant Killer’. This involved notjust staging but a complicated alu-minium scaffold tower structurerequired to support a Bedouin tent.
The ‘Total’ aluminium pit barrier
was also used on jobs such as the X-Factor Live Tour and Elton John’s Isleof Man concert. To secure the lattersaw the company invest in the designand manufacture of new 2m widepedestrian gates that were demandedby the health and safety officer incharge of the event. Other additionsto the barrier range have also beenintroduced in advance of providingthe barriers for Rihanna’s ‘Loud’ UKtour; all the above in conjunctionwith Robbie Wilson of R & R Logistics.Manufacturing new products has,however, always been the company’sway if it was felt it would add to theversatility of the existing productranges.
Other prestigious jobs includedsupplying orchestra staging forProms in the Park and the stage forthe Paralympics launch in TrafalgarSquare.
From BAFTAs to Comic Relief
ID&C has worked with hundreds oflive events this year, ranging fromWimbledon to Glastonbury andWembley to Coachella.
They offer the latest security, accesscontrol and accreditation productsfor any event, and have sold over fourmillion units of their patented securi-ty wristbands this summer alone.
In 2012, ID&C are extending theiraccreditation packages to offer acomplete solution for any event, withwristbands, security passes, lami-nates and event maps all available.This will allow event managers tocontrol their entire accreditationorder through one company, with anexcellent track record.
In addition to this, ID&C can offer acomplete RFID access control solu-tion for your event using their RFIDenabled wristbands.
This kind of access control is per-fect for any event with over 10,000visitors. The technology gives eventmanagers access to real-time visitornumbers and can admit over 2000guests per hour, per access gate.
Find out more by visitingwww.idband.co.uk or see ID&C at theShowman’s Show in the exhibitionhall. ID&C will have samples of alltheir event accreditation productsand will be showing off their new fes-tival-style exhibition stand.
Complete solutionfor any event in 2012
22 29/9/11 13:00 Page 1
SHOWMAN’S SHOW PREVIEW 23
SUNBABA are one of the UK’s leadingevent branding suppliers – by com-bining experience, the latest technol-ogy and materials, we deliver out-standing results.
Visitors to Sunbaba’s stand at theShowman’s Show can expect to see adiverse selection of large format printoptions.
New materials on display at theshow include screen printed poly-
mesh used at this year’s Ecovelocityevent at Battersea Power Station anda new UV printed carpet.
Sunbaba has been supplying eventbranding solutions, for over 12 years.
The company aims to make theprocess of purchasing event brandingas hassle free as possible for theclient and with an extensive supplychain are able to be flexible and turn-around orders to tight deadlines.
Sunbaba provided stage branding at the Thames Festival.
Sunbaba to roll outnew materials at show
BRADSHAW Rentals will be exhibit-ing a number of its wide range ofevent vehicles at the Showman’sShow.
For show and event organisers theon-site vehicle requirements can bevery diverse, from security patrols toVIP transport and waste collection tofirst aid ambulance or retail goodsmovement. These represent some ofthe jobs our vehicles perform at smalland large events across the countryannually.
Our workhorse Turf utility vehiclescan move a wide range of equipmentduring the building stage and provideload movement capability through-out and waste collection at the endof the event.
Our four to eight seat peoplemovers are often used to transport
visitors and VIP guests around theevent site in comfort. The ever popu-lar John Deere Gator is the star of the‘All Terrain’ vehicle range and is pop-ular for security patrol duties.
We also have a specialist ambulancethat can carry a patient and two peo-ple across uneven ground. This vehi-cle proves a fast response to first aidemergencies, transporting the firstaider, a stretcher and any bulkyequipment across site quickly.
The stabilised patient can then bemoved safely back across site to aroad ambulance for further treatmentor transport to hospital.
The wide range of vehicles and ourunrivalled customer service mean weare rated number one in the eventsindustry.
Event vehicles gearedup for Showman’s Show
23 27/9/11 11:17 Page 1
2 24 SHOWMAN’S SHOW PREVIEW
PREPARATIONS are under way asMCS gets set to exhibit at this year’sShowman's Show.
The firm has a strong track recordin delivering its powerful hire man-agement solutions to the events andAV hire sector. Portable Toilets,Wernick Hire and Gordon AudioVisual have all used MCS software tohelp them manage their successfuland expanding hire businesses.
MCS will be demonstrating MCS-rm, its Microsoft Windows-basedapplication, which is affordable, easyto use and fully configurable to alignto specialised events hire operation.
Visitors to the show will be able tosee how MCS-rm can improve assetutilisation, provide a centralised datastore of all business information and
help event hirers efficiently run andmanage their events schedules.
More efficient hire managementprocessing means acceleratedthroughput and a more competitive,flexible and profitable events hirebusiness.
MCS will also highlight some of itslatest software enhancements,including the new split delivery func-tionality. This enables event hirers tosplit their deliveries on a hire con-tract and will support common hirescenarios such as where deliverylorry capacity is exceeded or wherestaged deliveries are required.
Mark Black, managing director oftemporary accommodation and stor-age hire company Portable Space,said: “Our clients regularly hire a
number of cabins at one time andthese are listed on a single quotationand, therefore, on one hire contract.
“However, for transportation pur-
poses more than one delivery may berequired due to lorry capacity. TheMCS-rm functionality copes withthese complexities.”
Delivering powerful hire management solutions
ELLIOTT Event Hire has had a suc-cessful season, winning some presti-gious contracts and showcasing someof their latest products at festivalsand events throughout the country,including Goodwood Festival ofSpeed and Glastonbury.
Following on from their achieve-ments at last year’s Showman’s ShowElliott Event Hire will be using theopportunity this year to promotetheir customer branded wrappedbuildings at the event.
These have proved to be very popu-lar with a number of high profilecompanies, including Skoda,Wolverhampton Wanderers FC,Goodwood Estates, BMW andSheraton Hotel Group.
Vinyl wraps can be applied on anyof Elliott’s portable buildings,Moduflex® range or to their modular
buildings and can include completecoverage of windows and doors, with-out losing their functionality. Theycan be used for a multitude of pur-poses including ticket offices, corpo-rate hospitality suites, sleeper build-ings and reception facilities.
Bespoke wraps have two distinctadvantages, you can choose to standout from the crowd or blend in toyour surroundings. They can providea high impact advertising medium toenable you to maximise the visibilityof your brand or offer a subtle façadeso that the building is less conspicu-ous to its immediate environment.
For more details on Elliott’s corpo-rate branding wraps visit www.elliot-tuk.com/customer-branding
Elliott Event Hire has produced abrochure which includes their latestrange of products.
Firm promoting wraps
24 27/9/11 11:18 Page 1
SHOWMAN’S SHOW PREVIEW 25
BRITAIN’S biggest mobile LED screencompany, ADI.tv, will showcase anumber of new innovative screens atthe Showman’s Show.
Stars of their stand will be threebrand new iCONIC + screens, eachfeaturing high resolution screens forunrivalled picture quality and sharp-ness. All feature screens with a farsmaller pixel pitch than any compa-rable products worldwide.
The screens cover three sizes, withan iCONIC 25+ and iCONIC 15+ atthe smaller end of the market, aimedat the experiential market and small-er or city centre events. These offervastly reduced minimum viewing dis-tances, making them ideal for locat-ing amongst crowds on streets.
At the other end of the scale is thenew iCONIC 100+, with a brand new100mÇ screen with exceptional1600x900 resolution. This is aimed atlarge events with premium HD videorequirements, such as the recentHarry Potter premiere in TrafalgarSquare.
All iCONIC+ screens feature newprocessors with native HDMI/SDIsupport and come with on-boardgenerators and a 30 minute setuptime, making them incredibly versa-tile.
The iCONIC + screens will be joinedat the show by a number of other ADIproducts, including their innovativeiFLY 25 screen, plus ADI will beshowcasing their latest portableevent Outside Broadcast units.
Innovative new screensto be showcased at show
25 27/9/11 11:45 Page 1
2 26
WALK the Plank’s event engineersand pyrotechnic masters teamedup with hundreds of communityparticipants to entertain millionsacross the globe.
The spectacular CommonwealthYouth Games opening event in theIsle of Man was streamed world-wide by the BBC and was watchedlive in the Bowl Stadium at theNational Sports Centre by 1,500athletes from across 65 countries.
The ceremony featured morethan 225 dancers, musicians andactors from the Isle of Man, while
the Games were opened by HRHthe Earl of Wessex – the vicepatron of the CommonwealthGames Federation – after a paradeby the athletes and officials.
Prince Edward’s link with Walkthe Plank and their work beganalmost 20 years ago when heplayed a significant part in raisingsupport for the charity’s campaignto launch the UK’s only theatreship The Fitzcarraldo.
Liz Pugh, Walk the Plank co-founder and director of the open-ing ceremony, said: “It was a huge
honour to open theCommonwealth Youth Games,especially after closing theCommonwealth Games in 2002 inManchester.
“It’s a joy to work with so manyyoung people to welcome theyoung athletes of theCommonwealth to the island insuch a spectacular way. ”
Walk the Plank also presented apyrotechnic display featuringdrawings of fire to depict the sevenplayed sports as a firework finaleto close the Games.
A fiery Viking longboat at the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Youth Games.
Opening event entertainsmillions across the globe
Exchangegains topspot inawardsTHE Edinburgh Corn Exchange hasbeen named as Scotland’s best largevenue in the prestigious ScottishEvent Awards.
The venue beat off competitionfrom Glasgow’s SECC to take the titleand also had an added reason to cele-brate as it hosted the awards for thefirst time.
Venue manager Scott Snedden said:“We are absolutely thrilled to benamed best large venue in Scotland,especially when you consider thecompetition, it definitely puts thisaward into perspective.
“We were initially delighted to playhost to the awards, the first time theyhave been held in Edinburgh, but tobe named as winners certainly putsthe icing on the cake.
“Of course, we must pay credit toour amazing team of staff who werecognise as being instrumental inour success.
“This award will be an amazing‘thank you’ for them all, an apprecia-tion of the hard work and dedicationsince the venue’s inception overeleven years ago, now making us thebest large venue in Scotland.”
Managing director Paul Demarcoadded: “To attract the industry awardsto our venue has been a great oppor-tunity to showcase the diversity wehave to offer, and it has been a realoccasion to shine among the compa-ny of our contemporaries.”
Food anddrink festival‘best yet‘THE fourth annual RoyalLeamington Spa Food and DrinkFestival attracted a record number ofvisitors and has been hailed the bestyet.
Almost 23,000 people attended,6,000 more than last year, and visi-tors came from as far afield as NewZealand and America.
Festival highlights included demon-strations by celebrity chef ‘Rustie’ Leeand James McIntosh at the AGARangemaster Live Kitchen, whichattracted huge crowds.
Stephanie Kerr, executive directorof BID Leamington, said more than100 businesses exhibited, with manyalready booking again for next year.
She added: “Our fourth festival hasbeen a fantastic success. Exhibitorsreported substantial sales with manytrebling their usual weekendturnovers.
“The Taste Trail was yet again oneof the highlights. You could feel thebuzz as you walked around town andthere was a fantastic atmosphere inthe Pump Room Gardens.”
A GROUP of event industry professionalsare gearing up for a charity challengewhich involves walking an 85-milestretch from the Yorkshire Dales to theLake District.
The Howard’s Way Walk, now in itsfourth year, was inspired by freelancelogistics manager Howard Kerr, who losthis life in 2008 to pancreatic cancer.
Howard’s brother-in-law Nick Grecian,managing director of events crewingfirm Gallowglass, has planned the routeand will be accompanied by industryfriends – many of whom joined Howard’swalk in previous years.
Over the last three years, the event andrelated fundraising activities have raisedin excess of £180,000, which has fundeda PHD Studentship Award for aresearcher at Barts Hospital’s Institute ofCancer.
Professionalstake on challenge
26 27/9/11 11:19 Page 1
NEW PRODUCT SHOWCASE 27
Keeping the more adventurous consumer satisfiedRESEARCH shows that whilst football groundsand public leisure centres continue to securestrong catering expenditure from consumers, athird of visitors to sports venues don’t buy foodor drink at all. Reasons for consumers to eatelsewhere include price, lack of choice and neg-ative perceptions of quality.
Therefore supplying consumers with a variedrange of products, from a well-known andrespected brand whilst keeping costs down iscrucial.
Westlers has been manufacturing hot dogs forfoodservice for over 50 years, producing a widerange of canned and pouched varieties to suitcaterers’ diverse needs across the leisure sector.
Westlers Premium Pouched Hot Dogs are 87per cent pure pork, and have a distinctive natu-ral beechwood smoked flavour. They don’t con-tain MRM (mechanically recovered meat) andare manufactured in the UK, meaning they havefewer food-miles to travel.
If customers are looking for something differ-ent, Westlers has a range of serving options tokeep the more adventurous consumer satisfied,including the ‘Meat Feast’ (topped with chillicon carne) and the ‘Hot Shot’ (topped with
cheese and jalapenos). For large appetites, thereis even a 12 inch hot dog option, also known asThe Big Daddy.
Westlers is currently offering a range ofmachinery deals to caterers to enable them toprovide a variety of quality snacks with minimal
financial outlay. On average, caterers can expectto make around £64 profit for selling around 50hotdogs priced at £2.00 each.
For more information about Westlers Hot Dogs pleasecontact Westlers on 01653 693971 or email
AN innovative new ground protection system manufacturedsolely from UK recycled plastic waste, GroundMate, has beenlaunched by Centriforce Products, the UK’s largest independentplastics recycler.
GroundMate offers a tough and durable substitute to tradi-tional ground protection materials such as plywood. Water andslip-resistant, it will not rot or delaminate and costs up to 50 percent less than alternative systems.
Designed to protect soft and/or sensitive ground frommachinery and vehicles, GroundMate has been successfullytested for vehicles up to 30 tonnes.
GroundMate is completely reusable and is fully recyclableafter use. Centriforce also offers a service to take backGroundMate boards when a contractor has finished with themfor onward reuse or recycling.
GroundMate is manufactured at Centriforce’s Liverpool pro-duction centre from high quality 100 per cent recycled polymerwaste feedstock, sourced from plastic bottles, carrier bags andtransportation film – packaging that would otherwise be des-tined for landfill or export.
LEADING kitchen and equipment hirespecialist PKL were down on the farm tosupply a wide range of equipment to bothAlex James’ and Jimmy Dohery’s Harvestfestivals.
The simultaneous events were held atJimmy’s farm in Ipswich and at the farmof former Blur bassist turned cheesemaker Alex James in Kingham. PKL sup-plied all equipment for the onsite pop-uprestaurants, kitchens and demo areas.
In Ipswich, Surrey, PKL delivered hottables and combi-ovens for food outletssuch as the Olive Area, Blanch and Shock,Dock kitchen's Tandoori Tent andClimpson and Sons as well as backstage
equipment at chef demonstration areas.At Kingham, Oxfordshire, PKL provided
equipment for Salt Yard, Chefs Table,Blanch and Shock, Wahaca and Hix Barand Restaurant and more ovens for thechef demonstration and Kiddies Cookingareas.
Marketing director Lee Vines said:“We’re delighted to have been such anintegral part of these two great food festi-vals. Visitors were treated to some fantas-tic demonstrations by high profile chefsand were spoiled for choice with the pop-up restaurants on site. We’re already look-ing forward to next year!”
For more information visit www.pkl.co.uk orcall 0845 8404242
Cream of the crop at harvest!
WITH 2011 rapidly drawing to a close,organisers are already turning their atten-tion to next year’s events.
2012 promises to be a spectacular year forthe industry and with world famous eventssuch as the Olympics to look forward to, aswell as the Queen’s diamond jubilee cele-brations and the traditional summer festi-val season there will be something foreveryone.
To help organisers plan their upcoming
projects, the next issue of The Main Eventwill include a dedicated ‘New for 2012’ fea-ture, which will allow suppliers to shoutabout how they are gearing up for the newyear. So whether you are launching an excit-ing new product, moving offices or intro-ducing key new staff to enhance your busi-ness, we would like to hear from you.
To book your place in this feature contactMandy Mellor on 01226 734702 or [email protected]
New for 2012? We can helpyou spread the word ...
27 27/9/11 11:21 Page 1
28 Script Media 29/9/11 10:30 Page 1
Access ControlTicket Alternative UK ltdUnit 333Ashley Rd, LondonN17 9LNT: 0800 011 2894E: [email protected]
Wall to Wall CommunicationsUnilink House21 Lewis RoadSutton, SurreySM1 4BRT:020 8770 1007F:020 8770 9700E:[email protected]
Water suppliesWater Direct LtdB-26 Earls Colne Business ParkEarls ColneColchesterEssexCO6 2NST: 0845 345 1725F: 01787 223354E: [email protected]
365 - SUPPLIER DIRECTORY
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Membershipdrive aimed atbudding eventsBy Christina Eccles
THE Association ofIndependent Festivals haslaunched a new entry levelmembership to encourage budding festivals to get on board.
The association, whose mem-bers include Bestival,Creamfields and The GreenMan, has developed a new lowcost membership option,which is tailored towards earlystage promoters, particularlyfestivals in their first year.
General manager ClaireO’Neill explained: “Organisinga festival is a massive and riskyendeavour.
“We don’t encourage anyoneto embark on this path.
“However, many out therewill choose to get started onthis rocky road each year.
“The new entry level mem-bership is a way for new,young festivals to gain infor-mation via an experiencedsupport network whilst organ-ising their event.
“Of course the success of afestival is dependent upon thefestival’s own uniqueness and
internal organisation.
“What AIF can do is open thedoor to a host of good con-tacts, initiatives and an experi-enced team to give advice andhelp to avoid some of the fun-damental mistakes that can bemade in early years.”
Two new members haverecently taken AIF up on thisopportunity and been wel-comed into the association –London Green Fair, a free andenvironmentally conscious fairin the heart of London andLubstock, a flourishingacoustic festival inLeicestershire.
Claire added: “People willcontinue to want to organisefestivals, driven by their pas-sion for music, some form ofentertainment or message.
“We’re faced with an oversat-urated market – but at least itcan’t be called stagnant. Whilstwe don’t encourage people tostart new festivals, what we do aim to encourageis best practice, innovation,diversity and creativity.
The BT Tower was transformed into the world's largest lightsaber for one night only to celebratethe Blu-ray release of Star Wars: The Complete Saga.Lighting specialists from communications agency, Imagination, created the effect that trans-formed the London landmark, which stands at 189 metres tall.Senior lighting designer Jonny Milmer said access to the roof was the biggest challenge for thefive-person team.He added: “We accessed the roof through a small hatch so we were restricted with the type ofequipment we could use. We went to the limit of what we could do to maximize the effect. Itproves that with a resourceful, imaginative team you can achieve anything.”The lighting equipment weighed almost two tonnes, and was controlled remotely through aniPad 530m away on the roof of the Imagination building.
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