This month’s catch up…
SSE Arena Wembley welcomed
one million visitors in 2018
The SSE Arena, Wembley has
reported 2018 as its busiest year
to date, welcoming one million
visitors through its doors.
157 performances took place
across the year, including the
world premiere of the Golden
Globe winning film Bohemian
Rhapsody, three sold out ‘in the
round’ nights for Arcade Fire, and
the televised final of The X Factor.
John Drury, VP and general
manager of The SSE Arena,
Wembley, said: “Our reputation as
one of the UK’s most iconic concert
and events venues rang true in
2018. With a stunning array of
06
events across music, comedy, sport
and entertainment, we helped to
create memories that will last a
lifetime.
“Any venue is defined by the
people who run it and I’m proud
that our dedicated team delivered
such a strong and varied year.
Thanks as well to all the artists,
agents, managers, promoters and
our partners who have of course
been a key part of our success.
“Our building is 85 years old this
year, but constant reinvention and
innovation ensure we are ready to
hit more heights through 2019 and
beyond.”
Netflix puts events in
the limelight
Netflix’s new series, 7 Days out, has launched on
the subscription service, following the seven days
leading up to events including Chanel’s Spring 2018
Haute Couture fashion show, the League of Legends
Championship, the Kentucky Derby, the Westminster
Dog Show and the reopening of Eleven Madison Park
in New York.
Producers Andrew Rossi and Joe Zee told the The
Hollywood Reporter about the challenges of the show.
Rossi said: “We did weekly calls where we would
talk about all manner of events globally. Everything
in all kinds of different categories of fashion and food
and science. And I’m personally, in my filmmaking,
always drawn to big institutions that capture the
popular imagination but feel a little bit remote, or
they feel invincible and we don’t totally understand
how they operate.
“It is an incredible challenge to form the bonds
of trust that are needed to get really meaningful
windows into people’s approaches to these challenges
in such a short amount of time […] There’s this
countdown that naturally takes place in the last seven
days. That exists in the world of parties, it exists in
the world of curation for museums. Even literally, the
orbit of the Cassini probe around Saturn...is six and
a half days. The Bible says that the earth was created
in seven days. There’s this kind of natural, organising
principle to a week.
Zee concluded: “We all, at the end of the day, have
big events that we’re all invested in, whether we’re
planning our own wedding, whether we are getting
together Christmas dinner. Whatever it is, that week
going into it, we all feel that anxiety, we all feel that
sort of stress and then we also feel that elation as it
comes together.