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Reader Event Magazine Feature, Summer 2005 - 'Bowled Over’

Address:	Lord's Cricket Ground, Meetings and Events ~ Marylebone Cricket Club, Lord's Ground, St Johns Wood NW8 8QN
Tel	020 7616 8508
Fax:	020 7266 3170
Email:	Contact by email
Website:	Visit their website

Reader Event Magazine Feature, Summer 2005 - 'Bowled Over’ Information:

Our recent showcase of the events facilities at Lord’s Cricket Ground left readers highly impressed

The 5 May saw the launch of the new Lord’s Meetings and Events brand at the ‘Home of Cricket’, celebrated with an all-day events programme co-hosted by Square Meal. Some 700 event-organising readers signed up to attend a choice of breakfast, lunch and evening receptions, at which the Marylebone Cricket Club, having just spent £8m on upgrading the ground’s events facilities, was naturally looking to impress. Neither party was disappointed.

Keen to show off what a great all-rounder Lord’s is as a venue, the events team did an admirable job of dressing its various spaces for the day’s show-rounds. The 1,125sq ft Nursery Pavilion, for instance, not only served as the registration area but was also set up for a conference, plush dinner and car launch, with a little help from Flying Colours (020 7836 9292), which did an impressive job with the AV throughout. Impulse Events, meanwhile, gave guests a taster of its upcoming ‘Glitterati’ Christmas parties in the Banqueting Suite.

To many, the highlight of the tour was the NatWest Media Centre. Used to accommodate the international press on match days, the distinctive pod-shaped building’s contemporary facilities, which include tiered swivel seating for meetings with views over the pitch, break-out areas in the interview rooms, and two cool hospitality suites, went down a storm with our seen-it-all event organisers.

‘It certainly appears to wow people. One chap actually picked up his mobile, called the office and said they had to move their board meeting to one of the hospitality boxes as he’d never seen a room like it in his life,’ said John Robinson, head of sales and marketing at Lord’s. Maureen Evans from the law firm Mintz Levin was also impressed. ‘The sense of space, brightness and exclusivity one had up there was just great,’ she said, adding that she also loved the fresh, duck egg blue interior.

Guests were, of course, also impressed by the beautifully spruced-up Long Room. Steeped in cricketing history and sporting an impressive collection of art, the MCC’s hallowed club room is usually only open to members and has only admitted women since 1998, so can certainly be regarded as exclusive. ‘It’s a wonderful venue. As a cricket fan, it has been great to see facilities to which I normally wouldn’t have access,’ said Narrelle Roy of KSB Law.

After their show-round, all guests were treated to a reception on the brand new Pavilion Roof Terrace – another Lord’s trump card – where the (also new) in-house catering department offered plenty of tasty treats, from muffins and bagels at breakfast to mini fishcakes, prawn cocktails and bacon-wrapped green beans during the evening reception. As the sun started to set on the Champagne-sipping crowd, guests were invited back down to the Long Room for a wonderful cello recital by Julian Lloyd Webber, who announced he was thrilled to have a chance to ‘play at Lord’s’!

The event was a resounding success, even with self-confessed cricket loathers like Elizabeth Yareham, the event manager at Campden Publishing, who said: ‘One night at Lord’s has converted me! The venue proved very flexible and I have to say that the event was incredibly well managed – one of the best I\'ve been to.’ Robinson was equally pleased. ‘To work with Square Meal on this event has been a great feather in our cap. Others would kill to have this calibre of people coming to see their venue,’ he said.

Easy Rider NW8 may sound far away but all attendees were amazed at how easy it was to get to our event at Lord’s. Actually part of the London Borough of Westminster, the venue is just a five or 10-minute cab ride from the West End, while three tube stations (Baker Street, St John’s Wood and Warwick Avenue) are all within easy walking distance. It is also served by seven bus routes.

Click through for a venue review of Lord’s Cricket Ground & The Media Centre at Lord’s.