A hologram of Michael Jackson graced the stage of the 2014 Billboard Music Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday 18 May, when the late King of Pop ghost-walked the moon walk in a performance of newly released single ‘Slave to the Rhythm’ from his posthumous album ‘Xscape’. It’s an album made up of unreleased material remixed by artists such as Timbaland.
The digital projection mirrored many of the pop icon’s signature moves and was accompanied on stage by a troupe of real-life dancers. It was an act that captivated viewers around the world, using technology previously seen in the ‘resurrection’ of rapper Tupac Shakur at Coachella 2012 and deceased rappers Ol’ Dirty Bastard and Eazy-E in 2013. The Westminster Collection also used it to bring tourism expert Tracy Halliwell to the stage at Destination Westminster 2013 venue showcase.
Event bookers can replicate similarly mind-boggling marvels at central London event venue 8 Northumberland Avenue, where the very same holographic technology is available for hire. 8 Northumberland Avenue was the first venue in the UK to partner with Musion, the world leader in 3D holographic technology.
Options for entertainment include an all-singing Frank Sinatra plus a number of other modern day and retro acts. To explore the Ballroom as a setting for your next event, or for information on booking holographic entertainment and performances at your next product launch, party or conference, click here.
This Sunday 3 May, BAFTA 195 Piccadilly will play host to Edible Cinema and BOMBAY SAPPHIRE as the iconic venue stages a special screening of Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo & Juliet. It moves from the Electric Cinema on Portobello Road to the home of British film following the phenomenal success of previous screenings.
Guests will be treated to an edible adventure through the film, where experiences will range from a ‘tongue sandwich’ as Romeo and Juliet share their first kiss, to a mini vial of ‘poison’ as the film reaches its epic climax. As guests take their seats, the divided room will become apparent with one side Capulets and other Montagues. Each side will receive different cocktails, inspired by the two families.
The first of its kind, Edible Cinema is a collaboration between Soho House chef Jake Rigby Wilson, Soho House events manager Zoe Paterson, renowned experience organiser Polly Betton, BOMBAY SAPPHIRE mixologist Sean Ware and BAFTA 195 Piccadilly head chef Anton Manganaro. The concept truly enhances the film using taste, aroma and texture to heighten the viewers’ sensory experience of the film’s most famous scenes.
The screening will kick start Edible Cinema’s 2014 programme of events, with new films scheduled for the summer, Halloween and Christmas. All film titles and dates will be announced via the Edible Cinema website.
Central Hall Westminster invites events professionals to register to participate in a free webinar it will host on Thursday 20th February, 9am-10am, to address the way and means to ‘Avoiding WiFi woes – filling the expectation gap between venues and event organisers’.
Staying ahead of the game is about proactively engaging with technology, sharing ideas and adapting to resources available. The UK events industry has a lot of catching up to do and through its ‘Meet the Future’ series, Central Hall is aiming to fill and bridge that gap.
Learn from the experts, including Richard Hughes, director of event WiFi specialist Max WiFi, and Kim Carrington, IT manager at Central Hall, who will help you to ask venues the right questions to avoid those familiar WiFi woes.
The session will prepare you with a solid understanding, case studies, a handy glossary and a unique chance to ask your specific event questions. To register for this free event click here.
Send your questions prior to the event to Maria Schuett to guarantee inclusion in the seminar programme.
Church House Conference Centre has scooped the coveted BDRC Venue Verdict Gold Standard once again, in recognition of the Westminster venue’s consistently high quality of customer service. Only a handful of independent venues receive the Gold Standard, making this an exceptional achievement for Church House and its team.
Based entirely on the opinions and experiences of clients, the Venue Verdict Gold Standard is a true mark of quality. This latest accreditation tops off a successful year for Church House, having secured the Gold Standard award every three months through 2013.
The continual feedback from clients via the Venue Verdict Accreditation programme also acts as a foundation for ongoing improvements. During 2013, the venue invested over £146,000 in audio visual technology including web streaming and ‘video on demand’ services using HD broadcast quality equipment.
“Delivering an unbeatable level of customer service has always been our main focus. It’s become a unique selling point for which our venue and dedicated team is renowned. We work hard to ensure that every event is a success, from the moment an event is booked to the time visitors leave. It is an outstanding achievement for us, and highlights the good work we have been doing and will continue to do to achieve the highest standards,” said Robin Parker, general manager at Church House Conference Centre.
Central Hall Westminster (CHW), central London’s largest purpose built conference centre, today announced the launch of a specialist business event website built for mobile devices. The new mobile site has been created in response to a 70% rise in traffic from mobile devices to the CHW website.
The site is available in both English and Mandarin to maximise CHW’s growing customer base in the People’s Republic of China. CHW has previously recognised the importance of Chinese business tourism by producing a multi-lingual desktop site and appointing a dedicated account manager for the Chinese market. This commitment was recognised in April 2013 when CHW was awarded the Chinese Tourists Welcoming Award for ‘Best Internet/ Media Campaign by overseas business’.
Paul Southern, managing director of Central Hall, said: “The Chinese award put CHW onto the international map and with a desktop site available in Mandarin, it was crucial that the new mobile site continued to recognise this important market with a multi-lingual function. The statistics that we are seeing from industry research make it clear that mobile web access is increasingly important and cannot be ignored.”
Maria Schuett, marketing manager at Central Hall, added: “Since the corporate visual ID re-launch in 2012, the CHW brand has gone from strength to strength. Mobile is a natural progression to drive brand integrity and meet the target audience on their terms. Findings, such as those from Distilled Marketing that concluded 57% of users won’t recommend a business if they had a bad mobile experience, show how important mobile usage has become. I am proud that Central Hall supports a progressive marketing strategy and considers a dedicated, user-friendly B2B mobile website a vital marketing platform.”
The new designs were implemented by web design and development agency Applejack, a long-standing partner of CHW. The site includes mobile-specific elements, such as image and content sliders, carousels and virtual tours, all utilising swipe and drag navigation for touch screens. Additionally the text size has been increased and the font changed in places to improve legibility. Easily accessed menus and large buttons aid navigation, providing the user with an optimal viewing experience on multiple mobile platforms.
For more information, visit the new mobile site via mobile devices here: www.c-h-w.com
To thrive in today’s economy, companies must be able to collaborate with colleagues, partners and customers around the globe without delay and with the greatest possible ease. The pressure is on for organisations to become faster, leaner, meaner, greener and more global. With shrinking budgets and fewer resources, it’s getting tougher all the time.
The new video conferencing facilities at 10-11 Carlton House Terrace take away the strain of organising meetings between people located in different corners of the country, or world. These facilities are available now. To learn more and to enqire about availability and costs, please call 0207 969 5224 or email [email protected].
No.4 Hamilton Place is pleased to unveil its newly refurbished Business Lounge and Information Centre. The official opening took place earlier this month with special guests Professor Matthew Hudson CRAes and Sir Donald Spiers HonFRAeS.
Spiers, a major driving force behind the refurbishment of the rooms, introduced Professor Hudson who was honoured by the Royal Aeronautical Society as a Companion. His entrepreneurial skills and creativity as the saviour of Prestwick Airport were acknowledged before he took great pride in unveiling a commemorative plaque that recognised all of the Fellows and Companions who had supported the refurbishment project.
Located on the third floor of No.4 Hamilton Place, The Business Lounge is ideal for board and group meetings for up to 40 guests. Its high spec facilities include new air conditioning and heating, fully controllable lighting and a large smart TV.
The adjoining Information Centre has three work stations with computers connected to the WiFi network. A great deal of care and thought was invested into the décor to ensure it matched the heritage of the house. This included refurbishing the stair and access areas and opening up a further floor of the house.
Event planners learnt what events of the future will look like at Destination Westminster on Friday 13th September, with talk of 3D holograms, mood altering lighting, ‘unconference’ techniques and social media collaboration amongst tips shared and demonstrated during The Westminster Collection’s 10th anniversary venue showcase.
Held in the ornate surrounds of The Ballroom at central London venue 8 Northumberland Avenue, the breakfast showcase event, which was free to attend, was an opportunity for event buyers and planners to spend a morning with the sales and marketing teams at 50 of central London’s most iconic venues – all of which are available to hire for meetings, conferences, parties, dinners and events.
The Unleash Your Creativity forum saw speakers including Katie McPhee, senior community manager for Eventbrite, Sam Michel, founder of Chinwag and Jez Paxman, creative strategy director for Live Union, stretch delegates’ imaginations about what a conference could deliver if you’re brave enough to invite audience collaboration before or during an event to help shape content. Social media was cited as changing the whole nature of the buying process and Katie McPhee emphasised how important promotion is in making events successful – it takes four Facebook shares to sell one event ticket, she said.
Katy Hadcroft, general manager of RSA House, run by events caterer Harbour & Jones, also showed how food can become visual theatre and underpin interactive experiences for guests, if you apply a little imagination to presentation, serving techniques and taste.
8 Northumberland Avenue’s own catering team Alchemy demonstrated exactly how that is done with a brilliant breakfast menu that included mini Full English breakfasts served on slate squares, mini egg benedict, ‘posh porridge’ in mini bowls and three varieties of flavoured milk served from the crate in mini glass milk bottles, with straws.
TWC later took guests by surprise as Tracy Halliwell, London & Partners’ director of business tourism and major events, was ‘invited’ onto stage to deliver a special message of encouragement to buyers considering London as a business destination. Guests were none-the-wiser that she had magic powers as she spoke inspiringly about TWC’s role in delivering London’s future 2020 vision for business tourism, until she exploded into a bluster of feathers before re-emerging as a chiming, twirling 3D hologram of Big Ben. She had never really been on stage at all – it was all a holographic illusion created by Musion (and filmed in advance of the event).
Destination Westminster marked 8 Northumberland Avenue’s debut of this Musion technology and a dynamic presentation then followed incorporating true-to-life musical performances, animated presenting techniques and interactive graphics led by Musion director Ian O’Connell.
Robin Parker, TWC’s marketing director, said: “This year’s showcase delivered a thought provoking experience for both our event buying guests and member venues. It was great to see several new members exhibiting for the first time this year and many venues relished the opportunity to tell events organisers about the developments they have made to their meetings and events facilities in the last 12 months. The feedback from both members and guests has been very positive.
“The aim of the Showcase has always been to sell the destination first, highlighting Westminster as an area with the whole package. It’s not just for events, but for lifestyle, culture and entertainment and we hope that our Destination Westminster guests enjoyed the opportunity to meet and network with 50 of the borough’s finest.”
For news and updates from TWC, follow @Venues_Wminster on twitter and use #DestinationWestminster to join the showcase conversation.
Don’t miss incredible nuggets of creative wisdom from true experts in their fields at a special panel debate taking place at Destination Westminster, The Westminster Collection’s annual venue showcase and networking event.
On Friday 13th September, events professionals are invited to get together and enjoy a delicious, free breakfast prepared by our host venue 8 Northumberland Avenue, while chatting with the 50 wonderful venues we have within The Westminster Collection – all of whom are exhibiting within 8 Northumberland Avenue‘s stunning Ballroom.
At 9:00am, our panel of marketing, food, social media and live event gurus will kick off the Unleash Your Creativity forum. They aim to open your mind to what can be achieved when you inject imagination and resourcefulness into event planning and focus on creating new and memorable experiences.
Learn why you need to think ‘big picture’ and broaden expectations of what an event should do for brand awareness. Be inspired by the digital and social engagement techniques that can be built into an event or marketing campaign to give it legs, to really grip the target audience and to ensure there’s conversation across channels.
Hear how to bring innovation and the ‘wow’ factor to the canapé, lunch or dinner plate and nod to food fashions, while remaining firmly within budget. Discover more about the psychology behind live experiences and how you can maximise the value of your event by viewing your venue as part of a destination, not a standalone site. Take the opportunity to ask these experts questions about your own event plans in a dedicated Q&A session.
Chair of the panel Jonathan Byrne, who is chief operating office at No.4 Hamilton Place and board director at The Westminster Collection, said:
“Destination marketing is vital in order to grow business tourism and to reinforce the breadth of opportunities in London right now. Westminster is so well located, with a wealth of arts, culture and entertainment to absorb in and around the West End of London. This showcase and particularly the panel is about harnessing this energy, bringing together a cluster of seriously creative people and sharing techniques for engagement, event planning and delivery. Our challenge as a panel is to inspire you to be original.”
Destination Westminster takes place from 8:30 – 11:30am on Friday 13th September 2013, at TWC venue 8 Northumberland Avenue. Discover 50 incredible central London venues and network with each of their events teams during a special 10th anniversary showcase, complete with complimentary breakfast and refreshments.
To register for FREE, and for more information about the timings and full programme for the showcase and panel discussion, click here.
Tweet about this event using hashtag #DestinationWestminster #UnleashYourCreativity and our Twitter handle @Venues_Wminster.
Don’t miss incredible nuggets of creative wisdom from true experts in their fields at a special panel debate taking place at Destination Westminster, The Westminster Collection’s annual venue showcase and networking event.
At 9:00am, a specially selected panel of marketing, food, social media and live event gurus will kick off the Unleash Your Creativity forum in the Old Billiard Room. They aim to open your mind to what can be achieved when you inject imagination and resourcefulness into event planning and focus on creating new and memorable experiences.
Katie McPhee, Senior Community Manager, Eventbrite UK
Katie joined Eventbrite from the BBC in 2011 and was the company’s first employee in Europe. She runs the UK’s social media, co-ordinates all Eventbrite events, sources partnerships and manages a growing community of event organisers in the UK. Katie also works closely with event organisers advising on social media strategy.
Jez Paxman, strategy & creative director, Live Union
Jez helped found Live Union in 2009, based on a belief that the role and potential of events within the business and internal communications landscape was rapidly shifting.
An approach anchored in understanding where the true delegate value lies for a particular audience has seen Live Union build a client base that includes EDF Energy, Oracle, AXA, TripAdvisor, Nokia and Amnesty International.
A particular passion for Jez is the merging of live and digital channels to redefine what an event can be and what it can achieve for audiences.
Jez regularly participates in industry forums, blogs on all things live and contributes to the Narrative Environments MA course at Central Saint Martins.
Katy started her career in London after four years of studying Hospitality Management at Manchester University. She quickly became the Event Manager for Searcy’s at the Royal Opera House which saw her organise many high profile and glamorous events including the BAFTA awards for over 1000 celebrities, Condé Nast flagship GQ Man of the Year Awards and Chelsea Football Club’s Centenary Dinner.
Wanting to develop her skills further, a move into outside event catering led to experiencing a career defining moment…Lewis Hamilton arriving by helicopter to Exxon Mobile’s Silverstone Grand Prix party for 650 with oysters and amazing cocktails.
Katy’s career path then entered the world of contract catering where she joined boutique and sustainable catering company Harbour and Jones as a General Manager in 2010 working at 76 Portland Place before taking a short career break to travel. She re-joined Harbour and jones in January this year firstly working on projects and then becoming the General Manager at the Royal Society of Arts.
Katy is happiest when she is putting together creative quotes for clients, organising events and sharing her knowledge and enthusiasm for food.
Sam founded Chinwag in 1996 to support the nascent digital marketing industry. The organisation has grown alongside the industry, whilst Sam has held positions as arguably the UK’s first paid webmaster for Time Out magazine, part of the founding management team of the UK’s first web agency, Webmedia and the start-up team at digital off-shoot of TV firm Carlton (now part of ITV).
He’s launched numerous events including Chinwag Psych, international startup series Digital Mission and he’s the Executive Director of Social Media Week London, part of a global collaborative event series taking place in 26 cities wordlwide. Sam is a member of the global advisory board. Consultancy clients include UK Trade & Investment, Open Data Institute, the BBC, the Technology Strategy Board and he’s an active participant in a number of start-up accelerators.
Stephen has 25 years’ experience in business, founding, financing and operating a number of companies, including IP-Config.com, a business performance consultancy specialising in innovation and growth. Stephen is also chairman of 8 Northumberland Avenue, HarvestDigital and Visual Voice. He believes that innovation is an evolutionary process for survival, differentiation and sustained business growth. An essential component of every business, the skill is running innovation effectively and making it a core cultural component of the organisation.
Jonathan Byrne, chief operating officer, Royal Aeronautical Society at No.4 Hamilton Place
Jonathan Byrne has a wealth of experience in the Events and Hospitality industry, culminating in his current role as Chief Operating Officer of the Royal Aeronautical Society where he is responsible for the operational functions of the learned society, including marketing its Park Lane, Mayfair, headquarters No. 4 Hamilton Place as a meeting and events venue.
Jonathan joined the Society from Westminster’s Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre where, as Commercial Director, he oversaw the planning for the Chilcot Enquiry. He worked previously with Mint Hotels in the group-wide role of General Manager – Meetings & Events, developing the hotel group’s meetings and events product. For the seven years prior to this, Jonathan was Group Sales & Marketing Director, responsible for driving the brand and leading the sales and marketing functions at a strategic level across the nine businesses of the Crown Group.
To register for FREE, and for more information about the timings and full programme for the showcase and panel discussion, click here.
Venue Collection
Hire prestigious, unique and unusual London venues and facilities with Westminster Venue Collection.
The Westminster Venue Collection’s venues range from fashionable townhouses and private members’ clubs, to luxury hotels, celebrated attractions, historic institutes and societies.
As the world sharpens its focus on climate change and what we can do to slow it down, the event industry – along with a whole host of other businesses – is raising its game….
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