PRESS RELEASERef: i7
DATE: October 5th 2016
Brighton’s West Pier to belit up for two nights this week; tickets available to view the illuminations fromthe British Airways i360 pod
Multi-coloured lights will illuminate the West Pier tomorrow[Thursday 6th October]eveningto celebrate150 years since Eugenius Birch’s pleasure attraction opened to the public in 1866.
The illuminations will begin shortly after 6pm and will continueuntil midnight, starting white and moving through a range of bright colours before settling into a repeated cycle. TheBritish Airways i360 glass observation pod, which is conceived and designed by Marks Barfield Architects, will be one of the best places to view the illuminations on October 6thand tickets are available for flightsat 6.30pm, 7pm and 7.30pm.
The West Pier will be lit up for a second night, Friday 7th October, to celebrate the UK’s leading sustainability event, theP.E.A. Awards (People, Environment, and Achievement); a glamorous ‘green-carpet’ event which isbeing held at British Airways i360.
Caroline Lucas, MP for Brighton Pavilion and Co-Leader of the Green Party, will speak at the event and guests will also be treated to flame dancers on the beach, musicians on the British Airways i360 boarding deck and a feast of vegan food supplied by the attraction’s caterers Heritage Portfolio.
Tickets are available for British Airways i360flights during the illuminations on October 7th, at 7.30pm, 8pm, 8.30pm, 9pm and 9.30pm.
British Airways i360 Chairman David Marks said: “The 150th anniversary this week marks a new chapter in the history, memory and heritage of the West Pier. British Airways i360 cannot replace the much-loved and much-missed West Pier but it offers a modern-day alternative, which embodies the same DNA, using state-of-the-art engineering, design and technology; one whose purpose is also to delight, entertain and inspire the public.
He added: “Just as the original pier welcomed Victorian society to promenade and ‘walk on water’, British Airways i360 invites visitors today to gain a new perspective on the city, and to ‘walk on air’. I hope the public will find in it some continuation of a great British tradition, one established by those wonderful Victorian engineers such as Eugenius Birch.”
British Airways i360 CEO Eleanor Harris said: “British Airways i360 is delighted to be hosting the prestigious P.E.A. Awards which champion ‘green ‘heroes’ and the products, services and businesses which are changing the face of our planet. British Airways i360 passengers enjoy stunning views across Brighton, the South Downs and the south coast from our glass viewing pod and we have a particular passion for preserving the beauty around us.”
David Marks and Julia Barfield, of Marks Barfield Architects, will deliver a lecture ‘Breathing new life into the West Pier site’ in conversation with West Pier Trust historian Fred Gray at British Airways i360 on Monday October 10th. For tickets see westpier.co.uk/events
For further media information please contact Emily Bamber, PR and Communications Manager at British Airways i360:
01273 448363
Or Paula Seager at Natural PR:
01273 857242
INFORMATION FOR EDITORS
About British Airways i360
British Airways i360 is conceived and designed by Marks Barfield Architects, creators of the London Eye.
With an overall height of 162m, and a glass observation pod that glides up from ground level to 138m above Brighton beach, British Airways i360 is the world’s tallest moving observation tower and the world’s first vertical cable car. Visitors gain a unique perspective on the city as views unfold across Brighton and Hove, the South Downs and the beautiful South Coast. ‘Flights’ carry up to 200 passengers and depart every half an hour. While onboard, guests can enjoy a drink at the Nyetimber Sky Bar which serves a range of drinks from Sussex including Nyetimber, an award-winning sparkling wine.
At the base of the tower is the British Airways i360 beach building which houses a stylish restaurant, The BelleVue Brighton, with sea views and a large terrace. Menus have been developed with Steven Edwards, former winner of Masterchef: The Professionals, and feature ingredients sourced from the local area. The beach building also has flexible beachside events spaces which can be hired for private functions and can accommodate up to 1,100 people. The British Airways i360 pod is available for private hire and is licensed for weddings, so couples can say ‘I do’ at 138m above Sussex.
The British Airways i360 shop stocks gifts and souvenirs, many of which have been created by local Brighton artists.
British Airways i360 has worked with the West Pier Trust to reconstruct two of the original West Pier tollbooths using Victorian building techniques. The reconstructed buildings now grace the entrance to British Airways i360, and house The West Pier Tea Room and the British Airways i360 ticket office.
British Airways i360 holds the Guinness World Record for the World’s Most Slender Tower, with a diameter of just 3.9 meters at its widest point.
Website: BritishAirwaysi360.com
Twitter:@BA_i360
Instagram:@BA_i360
Facebook:BritishAirwaysi360
Pinterest:@BA_i360
Hashtag:#bai360
About Marks Barfield Architects
David Marks and Julia Barfield are the architect-entrepreneurs behind the creation of Brighton i360. They founded the company in 2005 and are its majority shareholders. Previously they performed a similar role creating the London Eye where they remained shareholders and directors until 2006. Together with a tight-knit group of extraordinary individuals, trusted consultants and companies, many of whom worked with David and Julia at the London Eye, they secured the planning permission, partners, land and funding for British Airways i360. Marks Barfield Architects is one of the UK’s most versatile and innovative architecture practices, established in 1989. David chairs the British Airways i360 board.
MarksBarfield.com
@marksbarfield
About British Airways
British Airways is one of the world’s leading global premium airlines and the UK’s largest international scheduled airline, carrying approximately 35 million passengers worldwide annually, on around 800 daily flights. The airline employs around 40,000 people, the vast majority of these at its sites throughout the UK, and has an annual turnover of £8.5 billion. It employs 2,500 people in Sussex, several hundred of them in Brighton.
Ba.com
@british_airways
Available spokespeople
David Marks, managing director of Marks Barfield Architects
Julia Barfield, managing director of Marks Barfield Architects
Eleanor Harris, CEO of British Airways i360