Ice skating returns to London's Natural History Museum for final time

Record ID: 1642869

  • Title: Ice skating returns to London's Natural History Museum for final time
  • Date: 21st October 2021
  • Summary: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (OCTOBER 21, 2021) (REUTERS) PEOPLE ICE SKATING ON THE ICE RINK IN FRONT OF THE NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM IN LONDON EVENT DIRECTOR AT IMG (THE ORGANISING BODY BEHIND THE ICE RINK) WALKING UP TO GROUP OF SKATERS ON THE ICE RINK GROUP OF WOMEN SKATING IN A CIRCLE (SOUNDBITE) (English) EVENT DIRECTOR AT IMG, DAN FILMER, SAYING: "We're super sad, obviously, this is the last time that we'll be out the Natural History museum ice rink skating in front of this iconic building, but the museum have got some really exciting plans to transform this space into an amazing green hub in the centre of London, where they've got amazing plans for it. I'm really excited to see it. I can't wait to come next year." PEOPLE SKATING ON ICE RINK WITH NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM IN THE BACKGROUND MAN SKATING WOMAN SKATING AND TURNING ON ICE FEET OF ICE SKATERS ON ICE (SOUNDBITE) (English) EVENT DIRECTOR AT IMG, DAN FILMER, SAYING: "This, for so many families around London, is a tradition that they come every year. I think that when you see people coming through the gates, families and friends smiling, this is why we do what we do. And at this iconic venue, it's hard not to see why people would come down to this venue and skate beneath the lights of the pea, pea lights in the trees and around this amazing Christmas tree. It's been hugely successful over the years, and our partnership with the museum has been amazing. We've truly loved being here. It's been 16 years since we've been here, so being the final year, we're just truly trying to make the most out of it." VARIOUS OF PEOPLE SKATING UP TO AND AROUND THE CHRISTMAS TREE WOMAN SKATING AND BENDING DOWN ON ICE WOMAN DOING PIROUETTE ON ICE (SOUNDBITE) (English) EVENT DIRECTOR AT IMG, DAN FILMER, ASKED ABOUT THE RISING NUMBER OF COVID CASES IN THE UK, SAYING: "Safety is a massive priority of ours when we're planning any event, we work so closely with the local authorities and safety groups around London that we remain flexible. We're ready to change whenever, whenever necessary, and we are doing exactly what the government need us to do at the moment. Obviously, the advantage of this amazing venue is that is predominantly open air, which is a massive plus, but obviously we put additional sanitisers around, cleaning more readily, you know, PPE around the site on the staff just to make people feel secure and safe and just more worrying about the experience where for visitors who come to this space, they know and love it, and we want to give them the exact same experience again." NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM BUILDING / CHRISTMAS TREE AND PEOPLE SKATING ON ICE RINK WOMAN SPINNING ON ICE MAN SKATING AROUND AND SPINNING ON ICE ICE RINK BOX OFFICE GROUP OF SKATERS / SIGN UNDERNEATH CHRISTMAS TREE, READING (English): "NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM ICE RINK"
  • Embargoed: 4th November 2021 19:09
  • Keywords: Christmas Ice skating London Natural History Museum activities winter
  • Location: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
  • City: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
  • Country: United Kingdom
  • Topics: Europe,Living/Lifestyle,Society/Social Issues
  • Reuters ID: LVA001F03SLSP
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: The ice rink at London's Natural History Museum will return for one more festive season as its time at the iconic venue comes to an end after 16 years.
    From Friday (October 22), skaters will be able to enjoy the ice against the backdrop of the museum and the 30ft (9.14m) Christmas tree, an activity which the organising body said is a holiday tradition for many in the British capital.
    "This, for so many families around London, is a tradition that they come every year. I think that when you see people coming through the gates, families and friends smiling, this is why we do what we do. And at this iconic venue, it's hard not to see why people would come down to this venue and skate beneath the... pea lights in the trees and around this amazing Christmas tree," Dan Filmer, event director at IMG told Reuters on Thursday (October 21).
    The annual winter tradition will end to make way for the Natural History Museum's plans to transform the space into a green hub, said Filmer.
    The ice rink's opening comes as Britain reported its highest number of coronavirus cases since mid-July, with 52,009 on Thursday and 115 deaths within 28 days of a positive test, according to government data.
    Filmer said safety was a big priority for IMG when opening the ice rink and they were ready for changes if necessary without disrupting the experience for skaters.
    "We're ready to change... whenever necessary, and we are doing exactly what the government need us to do at the moment. Obviously, the advantage of this amazing venue is that is predominantly open air, which is a massive plus... for visitors who come to this space, they know and love it, and we want to give them the exact same experience again."
    The ice rink at the Natural History Museum is scheduled to be open until January 16, 2022.
    (Production: Will Russell, Mindy Burrows)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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