Venue spotlight - August
Every month we’ll give you an update on some of the latest news from a selection of venues from around the country.
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Article Contributors
For starters there’s news of a huge expansion at The Belfry,Co-op Live in Manchester is up and running, Manchester Treehouse is counting down the days to its grand opening and London’s ExCeL prepares to launch the first phase of Immerse LDN.
The Belfry
The Belfry is driving ahead with its £80m expansion project which it is hoped will be complete by autumn next year.
The investment will see its Resort developed with The Masters Suite, built and designed to host 648 guests for banqueting with a max capacity of 920, making it perfect for conferences and product launches and mini expos!
A pre-function area, a mezzanine floor and an outdoor terrace will feature, as will a boardroom.
It will boast more than 150 bedrooms and a hi-tech leisure club, with all development aimed at attaining a BREEAM Excellence rating by reducing carbon emissions thanks to energy-efficient design and renewable energy integration.
Co-op Live Manchester
After some initial teething problems, Co-op Live in Manchester opened its doors back in May and the 23,500-capacity arena is going from strength to strength.
The largest indoor arena in the country is owned by Oak ViewGroup (OVG), the largest sports and entertainment developer in the world.
It was British rock band Elbow who opened the venue and since then it has hosted Eric Clapton and Barry Manilow with the Jonas Brothers and Janet Jackson to follow soon.
Despite the cost of the project looking like it could reach £450m,rather than the initial estimate of £365m, Co-op Live is set to bring more than 120 events a year to the North West, attracting 1.3m revellers.
The first purpose-built music arena of its kind, it has a significantly lower ceiling and tiered seating which bring fans closer to the artist while the sound bowl design gives the venue an acoustic experience to remember.
Treehouse Manchester
After the huge success of Treehouse London, which is perfectly perched across the street from the BBC and a stone's throw from the movers and shakers on Regent and Bond Streets, Manchester is preparing to welcome Treehouse to its scene.
Treehouse Manchester is at the end of Deansgate, the site of the former Renaissance hotel.
Having been due to open early last year, it looks like the doors should finally open later this summer.
The hotel is reported to have 224 guest rooms, in addition to multiple event spaces, a gym, as well as two restaurants, as well as a panoramic rooftop bar and secret hideaway.
It will be the perfect backdrop for private events for up to 400 people. In their enchanting event spaces, every gathering is transformed into a special and unique occasion. With a spacious screening room and local farm-to-table fuel curated by Mary-Ellen McTague, the opportunities are immense.
Immerse LDN
Last, but not least, for this month is news from the ExCeL in London, part of Lime Venue Portfolio, which is launching its first phase of Immerse LDN.
Destined to be the UK’s biggest immersive entertainment district once complete, Immerse LDN will span more than 160,000 sq ft and offernew after hours and hospitality opportunities for the events industry.
The venue will be dedicated to showcasing immersive experiences and original productions across the purpose-built site in the heart of London’s Royal Docks.
It hopes to build upon the success of previously hosted events including Jurassic World: The Exhibition and Disney100: The Exhibition,which together sold more than 600,000 tickets.
It will open this month, welcoming visitors to The FRIENDS™Experience: The One In London, as well as Formula 1®: The Exhibition.
Immerse LDN will also house a wide variety of food and drink offerings, beginning with street food collective KERB, followed by a new waterside food hall plus bar and café later in the year.
The development is part of a wider £300-million-pound investment programme in ExCeL’s venue campus and will become a major contributor to the wider Royal Docks regeneration plan, bringing an additional 2.5 million visitors to the area every year, as well as hundreds of new jobs.
