Monday 2nd August 2010: A giant pop up maze has appeared in the heart of London’s iconic Trafalgar Square as part of campaign by the West End Partnership to encourage visitors to enjoy getting a little lost whilst exploring the area.
For five days visitors can enjoy exploring the maze and wondering through many of the West Ends most famous streets, lanes and squares. Each ‘Street’ within the maze will highlight some fascinating facts about the cultural history of the West End, such as Carnaby Street, which apparently inspired Ray Davies to write The Kinks hit ‘Dedicated Follower of Fashion’, or Trafalgar Square, which is said to be home to the world's smallest police station.
Upon reaching the heart of the maze, visitors will be rewarded with an exclusive taste of the amazing entertainment, culture, dining and shopping on offer throughout The West End. The rolling programme of activity highlighting the best that the West End has to offer, includes:
- Monday – A vibrant showcase from some West End’s top shows - including Priscilla Queen of the Desert drag queens, some Avenue Q puppets and couple of Sherlock Holmes!
- Tuesday – China town arrives with a bang as giant paper dragon and lion puppets weave their way through the maze and live dragon candy making sessions take place at the centre of the maze
- Wednesday – London’s finest Saville Row tailors will be trimming the hedge first thing
- Thursday - One of the UK’s leading young orchestra groups, The Platti String Quartet, will perform a variety of stunning pieces, filling the maze with beautiful music.
- Friday – On the last day it’s time to party as we celebrate the iconic Carnaby Street with a swinging 60’s vibe, including live music from 60’s tribute bands and lots of vespas - groovy! There will also be a small exhibition of photographs from iconic 60’s photographer Phillip Townsend, picture include Twiggy, the Rolling Stones and many more. (Phillip will be available for interview if requested)
The maze aims to celebrate London’s West End as the world’s top cultural, entertainment, shopping and dining destination, with a global mix of 2,500 restaurants & bars, 2,000 shops, 40 renowned theatres, 30 museums and galleries, 17 Michelin star restaurants and 7 tranquil green spaces.
Jace Tyrrell, Campaign Director, the West End Partnership says “By creating the maze and filling it with some of the best examples of what the West End has to offer, we’re hoping to encourage visitors to go beyond their usual path and enjoy getting a little lost! The West End is filled with hidden gems, wonderful boutiques, cafes, shops and cultural hot spots all waiting to be discovered. With so much to enjoy it’s worth getting lost again and again!”
The maze itself measures approximately 30m x 20m and each hedge is 2.4m high. The maze has been constructed using 118 individual 2m sections, with a mixture of laurel and thuja hedging. Six articulated lorries delivered the hedging to Trafalgar Square on Sunday evening and a dedicated team worked through the night, taking approximately six hours, to build the maze structure. *
The maze will be in place for one week and will be open to the public from
11am – 8pm each day, for more details please go to www.westendlondon.com
For further information please contact the West End Partnership Press Office on:
0207 307 3100 / wema@cakegroup.com
*Footage of the build taking place will be available from the WEMA team along with B-roll and images from Monday pm. There are also interview opportunities with Jace Tyrell, Campaign Director of West End Partnership and Brian Connell, Chairman of West End Partnership.
Cake Notes to Editors
Cake is an ideas company that makes brands become part of peoples’ lives. We call it ideas incorporated.
Over the last 10 years Cake has established itself as a leading agency for creating ideas and securing brand fame for our clients. Examples of this include the launch of Nintendo’s Pokémon and Nintendo Wii, the turfing of Trafalgar Square to highlight London’s green spaces for Visit London and the Evian pool, whereby we saved Brockwell Lido from being closed with an image that could be seen from space.