When did it all start?
Our first Awards Ceremony was back in 1987 - the Independent Radio Advertising Awards at The Grovesnor House Hotel in London, presented by a popular DJ at the time, Chris Tarrant. Wonder what happened to him...
Where have you worked?
So far we have produced events in London, Manchester, Sheffield, Birmingham, Barcelona, Venice, Paris, Amsterdam, Toronto and New York.
Have you only worked in hotels?
No! The majority of our awards ceremonies have taken place in hotels, particularly in London, where we have worked many times at The Grovesnor House, The Park Lane, The Hilton on Park Lane, The Dorchester and the Royal Lancaster. But we have also staged events in venues as diverse as a medieval shipyard (Barcelona), a 14th century monastery on its own island (Venice) and an aircraft carrier (New York). In London itself we have worked on many occasions in the City at The Guildhall and The Brewery, as well as in the crypt of Notre Dame, Alexandra Palace and the Natural History Museum. More regally, we have worked frequently at The Royal Albert Hall and once at Buckingham Palace.
Which awards ceremonies have you done?
Lots! As an illustrative rather than exhaustive list, in the world of consumer publishing we produced from their inception the Q Awards, the Kerrang Awards, the Mojo Awards, the Empire Awards, the Elle Style Awards, the FHM Awards, the Maxim Women of the Year Awards and the Heat Awards.
In business publishing we produced The Heating and Ventilation News Awards, the British Construction Industry Awards and the British Press Awards. In finance, events we have produced include the British Insurance Awards, the Investment Week Fund Manager of the Year Awards, the IFA Awards and the Investor Relations Awards.
In advertising we produced the Mediaweek Awards, the M&M Europe Awards and the Independent Radio Advertising Awards.
In IT we produced the Channel Awards, the Computing Industry Awards and the Call Centre of the Year Awards. We have also worked for numerous charities, including Marie Curie Cancer Care, Help The Aged and WellChild.
What clients have you worked for?
Our clients have included Boat International Media, Quantum, Conde Nast, British Telecom, EMAP, Informa, Incisive, VNU and HM The Queen.
What services do you offer?
Everything. We take an event from concept to completion. In fact, in many cases, we have been brought on board to create inaugural awards. We will help you choose a venue and plan your perfect evening. We will supply all of the technical capability required for staging, sound, lighting, graphics and video. We will write a script which both ensures the presenters get across your key corporate messages and makes sure the technical side of the evening runs smoothly. We will also liaise with you to ensure the event is branded and promoted appropriately. And remember, we guarantee our budgets. There will be no extra charges.
Which celebrity presenters have you worked with?
In all honesty, most of them. We have written scripts for comedians including Jonathan Ross, Jack Dee, Graham Norton, Dara O’Briain, Ricky Gervais, Jimmy Carr, Rory Bremner, Johnny Vaughan, Bob Monkhouse and Les Dawson. Not all of them are still available. Our words have been uttered by newsreaders, presenters and journalists including Jeremy Paxman, John Humphreys, Michael Buerk, Jon Snow, Natasha Kaplinsky and Kate Silverton.
What bands can you book?
Whatever you want! We’ve booked everything from covers bands, jazz quartets and soul ensembles to The Marching Band of the Royal Marines, The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the West End cast of Buddy.
What have been some of the more memorable moments?
Jarvis Cocker celebrating his release after his arrest for waggling his bum in the general direction of Michael Jackson by attending one of our awards ceremonies and getting a standing ovation. Tony Hawks’ two-minute performance at the British Press Awards, it’s since passed into journalistic legend. Paul McCartney helping to lay the tables at Ronnie Scott’s. Phil Spector demanding people be thrown out of the Q Awards because it was too crowded. Seal jumping the queue for bangers and mash at the Cafe Royal. Ralf Schumacher turning up to present an award but refusing to speak. Jeremy Clarkson squaring up to Piers Morgan. But nothing else quite matches the one-off that was Johnny Vegas and Dustin Hoffman shooting the breeze for more than 20 minutes at the Empire Awards. We wondered if they’d ever leave the stage.