Foreign Field Kit Fair at Brunel’s Old Station

Next week Brunel’s Old Station in Temple Meads will welcome an unusual event, the Foreign Field LRP Kit Fair.

The event allows people to recreate period dramas with costumes and will also be very attractive to role players and gamers.

That includes re-enactments of military battles in the UK, historical periods such as the medieval age and also more recent TV and film shows.

The Kit fair has relocated to Bristol for 2012 because the previous event venue in South Yorkshire proved prohibitive, not having the ease of access by public transport for which the Passenger Shed is famous.

Some of the unique traders who will be available at this event on Saturday 11 and Sunday 12, February, are the Velvet Glove costume and make up stall, Weapons and Shields from the character kit and wandering Soldier weapons and shields.

There will also be a number of fantasy groups promoting it including – Brixham Berserkers, F&H, and Bladelands Fantasy. As part of the appeal the Foreign Field LRP Kit Fair will run a fantasy fashion show and a free prize draw will accompany the normal excitement of the shopping experience.

The Foreign Field LRP Kit Fair is opening from 10am-5pm, Saturday, and 11am-4pm Sunday at Brunel’s Old Station. Admission is £3.00 for adults, £2 for OAPs and under 16s and is free for under fives.

For further details, please visit their website.

Bristol Folk Festival 2012

The Bristol Festival of Folk Music takes place on May 5-May 7 but tickets are already up for grabs for this popular event.

In fact thanks to the organisers paring with UK Festival Guides there are two pairs of weekend tickets up for grabs.

You and a friend or partner could be enjoying this fantastic event which is held in a central location at Colston Hall. That means that there is no need to worry about the weather impeding your fun.

The line-up for this year’s festival includes excellent folk bands like Afro Celt Sound System, Show of Hands and 3 Daft Monkeys.

The festival patron is Seth Lakeman who commented: “After last year’s hugely successful return to the UK’s live music calendar, I am delighted to be patron once again for Bristol Folk Festival 2012. With an eclectic line-up of multi-award winning, and up-and- coming folk and acoustic acts there is something for everyone.”

For the chance to win tickets go to the UK Festival Guides competition page.

If you want information about hosting your own festival in Bristol, contact Brunel’s Old Station which is one of the largest indoor event venues in the South West.

Bristol Event Held For Diamond Jubilee

To celebrate the day that Queen Elizabeth II ascended to the throne 60 years ago, a gala concert will take place at Colston Hall, Bristol.

The gala concert is hosted by presenter Jennie Bond who used to be the Royal Correspondent for the BBC.

Although Queen Elizabeth II took the throne on February 6, the Happy and Glorious concert takes place on Friday, February 24, to celebrate 60 glorious years of her reign.

This will be one of the first events in Bristol to mark the occasion, though if you are planning an event you can also contact Brunels Old Station to check for availability.

At Colston Hall Gavin Sutherland will conduct the London Concert Orchestra along with guest singers James Graeme and Rosemary Squires.

The concert will feature the most popular songs from popular culture including theme tunes from favourites such as Morecambe and Wise, Last of the Summer Wine and the Archers.

There will, of course, also be national favourites such as Land of Hope and Glory and Jerusalem.

The concert starts at 7.30pm and is easily accessed from Bristol Temple Meads station and the Passenger Shed. Tickets are priced between £19.50 and £34.50. To book online visit www.colstonhall.org

Around the World in 80 Days Bristol Event

Bristol has a great reputation as a gastronomic destination as this rich agricultural centre is the food basket of the West Country.

The city has a number of Michelin starred restaurants, the world’s largest restaurant in Za Za Bazaar and numerous tasting events such as next weekend’s cider festival held at Brunel’s Old Station in Temple Meads.

Now an 80 day extravaganza has been launched to allow Bristol diners to enjoy a variety of food from around the world. From now up until Friday, April 6, there are special offers on a gastronomical tour around Bristol where you can sample exotic foods such as Korean and Nigerian cuisine.

The deal covers excellent restaurants in the top eating destinations in the city including Clifton and the Old Market. With the Chinese New Year coming up soon it is excellent to know that the Dynasty Chinese restaurant at 16A St Thomas Street is included in the Around the World in 80 Days campaign deal.

Dynasty Bristol

Its owner Suzannah Ho, told the Guide2Bristol that it is “a great idea and will promote all cuisine types to make dining out in spring 2012 affordable and exciting.”

Dynasty was only recently acclaimed as one of the best Chinese restaurants in the UK by no lesser authority than MSN Food. With established reputable restaurants included in the deal, as well as new and exciting new projects, there are plenty of reasons to register your details at 80-days.co.uk.

If you have a gastronomical event of your own that you would like to promote, contact Brunel’s Bristol event space for more information on how we can organise the perfect occasion for you.

HS2 – Fantasy or Folly?

The proposal for a new high speed rail network (HS2) has caused much consternation among the British population this week. Some are excited about the chance to get faster trains across the UK, many think that the project, which will cost £36 billion and take until 2026 to complete, is a big waste of money in these austere times.

The answer is probably somewhere between the two. Britain has long lagged behind the rest of Europe in terms of the quality of its train service. Compared to other European countries are trains are slow and overcrowded. British trains cost considerably more than their counterparts in Holland, France and Italy and we have none of the doubledecker trains which are used to maximise space so well on the continent.

 

HS2 has split opinion

The British transport secretary Justine Greening has therefore described H2S, which will cut down the time it takes to travel from London to Birmingham to a mere 49 minutes as “the most significant transport project since the building of the motorways.”

 

There are further links proposed to connect London with Manchester and Leeds. However those of us who live in the West Country might also be feeling left out, as commuting could be made so much easier if the current one hour and forty minute journey to Paddington were cut down.

However a number of commentators on the new websites have complained that the project will only benefit a privileged few despite the great toll it will take on the environment and the infrastructure.

A selection of comments from readers on the news agencies websites are below:

The Guardian: “Rural vandalism on a gargantuan scale. Stop it now Dave!” Dobbins

Sky News: “Only now?…What took you so long?…
“The French and Germans have had high speed rail services for years….”
“Seems the EU got a lot of things right a long time ago….whilst your were sleeping.” Breffni

Meanwhile the Telegraph political editor Patrick Hennessy reported that the project would create £8.5 billion black hole as the funds fail to match the benefits of the project.

What do you think about High Speed Rail 2? Let us know your thoughts….

5 Top Tips for Planning your Bristol Event

A blog in Eventbrite has given some really good tips for those looking to host Bristol events in the New Year. Events also come with a certain amount of stress for the organisers, so being organised in advance can really help you to get on top of the situation and stay ready for any eventuality.

1) Use technology to your advantage. You may feel like there’s less opportunity with so many competing voices and brand messages on social media such as Twitter and Facebook, but in fact the opposite is the case. Just think of it as a larger audience for your event. You just need to make sure that you message is articulated clearly and distinctly enough to stand out from the crowd. This may extend to posting tweets twice to make sure they don’t get lost in the mass of information on Twitter. Utilising the right contacts can mean that you get the right support online and in person. With the right technology you can also have a spectacular audio visual event, but if the technology has not been prepped properly then this can lead to embarrassing sound and screen problems.

 

3) Don’t be afraid to ask for a lot from suppliers. After all a packed event venue provides them with the ultimate marketing opportunity – a captive and engaged target audience. Remember that you are offering them as much as they are offering you and negotiate a good deal. Also bear in mind matching up your event with sponsorship – for instance a cider festival is the perfect place for cider suppliers to market themselves.

4) Bargaining on every front is important. With large scale supplies needed for a successful event, and lot of competition among suppliers, there is plenty of scope for great deals and hard bargains to be struck.

5) Choose a great event venue. There are hundreds of event venues across the UK but some have unique selling points. Our Passenger Shed is a good example as you can have your wedding or conference in one of the world’s oldest train stations, a magnificently beautiful building which is conveniently located next to Bristol Temple Meads train station.

Bristol To Be Top Event Venue For 2012

Bristol is looking forward to a prosperous year in 2012 and events are set to be one of the main driving factors for the local economy.

Event venues such as Brunel’s Old Station hold various conferences and meetings throughout the year and that is only set to increase as the demand caused by the Olympics means that more people will host their events outside of the capital.

Furthermore the news that Bristol could be in line for a massive investment to launch super speed broadband across the city is only set to boost Bristol’s reputation as a business destination.

This is all part of the drive for Bristol to be recognised as a green capital city with a range of energy saving measures which are designed to boost, rather than hold back, productivity.

Part of this is a 60 million pound drive to make transport even better in the city (Brunel’s Old Station is already very convenient as it is located next to Bristol Temple Meads train station). At the same time Bristol is also aiming to be the home of the government’s Green Investment Bank

Bristol City Council leader Barbara Janke told the Insider : “Bristol is recognised across the UK as one of the most economically strong and resilient cities in the country.

“Together with our business partners we shall continue to make the case for Bristol to be the home of the new Green Investment Bank, and to unlock multimillion-pound government investment for super-fast broadband roll out in cities.”

The next Bristol event to be held at Brunel’s is the cider festival held on the weekend of January 27 and 28.