|
|
|
|
Olympic Games big screen approved
(05/08/2008)
|
|
|
Norwich is set to be hosting a big-screen broadcast of the London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games after proposals were approved on Thursday.
Members of the Norwich City Council planning committee gave the green light to formal plans for a screen, to be installed above the entrance to Chapelfield shopping centre at Chapelfield Plain.
Norwich is the only city in the eastern region to be invited to host a large public screen by the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG).
The screen, which will be a permanent feature in the city, is expected to be put in place as soon as possible and will be up and working in time to be the focus for a celebration marking the handover ceremony at the close of the Beijing 2008 Games on Sunday 24 August.
Cllr Steve Morphew, leader of Norwich City Council, said: 'We promised to make Norwich more fun and this is the latest example. In the past, when we have had a big screen for other events, it has brought people together and created a wonderful atmosphere in the streets.
“Now we can do it whenever the city wants - starting with the handover ceremony later this month.”
The Norwich screen will differ from others around the country in that it will not be in operation 24 hours a day, seven days a week. LOCOG and the BBC have specified that the screen must run for 16 hours a day and this would be from 7am to 11pm Monday to Saturday and 9am to 10.30pm on Sundays.
However, to allow some flexibility, permission has been given for 20 exception days to be built-in each year. These will allow later or earlier broadcasting for extraordinary events.
Volume will be set at a low level before 9am and after 6pm and during store hours it will be in “ambient mode” to ensure it is not intrusive for people using the Chapelfield shopping complex.
What is shown on the screen will be managed by the BBC. Local content will be a top priority, but this will be underpinned with a schedule of live television programmes from the range of BBC channels, focusing on major events, local and national news, sport, the arts, music and other entertainment.
Appropriate crowd management will be put in place for events expected to attract large numbers of people.
Local partner organisations will also provide material and a content management committee will be set up comprising of members of the city council’s cultural services team, the BBC, LOCOG and Chapelfield shopping centre management.
The East Anglian Film Archive based in Norwich and the concentration of creative industries in the county could also provide interesting content for the screen year round.
The state-of-the-art screen is designed to maximise efficiency, running at 20-30 per cent of maximum power. It is designed only to run ventilation fans at their fastest when external temperatures rise and the LEDs are only at their brightest when light conditions require.
The big screen is a part of Norfolk Celebrating Talent, the countrywide partnership programme to maximise benefit from the London 2012 Games, involving Norwich City Council, Chapelfield shopping centre, the BBC, Norwich Heritage, Economic and Regeneration Trust (HEART), and Active Norfolk.
The space is owned and managed by Chapelfield shopping centre and will continue to be managed by it on a day-to-day basis.
|
|
British Minigolf Team Open Wroxham Barns Adventure Golf Course
(05/08/2008)
|
|
|
ix members of the British Minigolf Team including World Crazy Golf Champion Chris Harding, were at Wroxham Barns near Norwich on Saturday, August 2, to officially open the new 18-hole mini adventure golf course.
Chris Harding launched the course by beating Richard Tidy, golf professional at De Vere Dunston Hall Golf Club in a challenge match, 38 strokes to 43.
The mini adventure golf course, developed by UrbanCrazy, www.urbancrazy.com on behalf of Green Space Leisure, who run the children’s funfair at Wroxham Barns, provides a fun sporting challenge for people of all ages and abilities. The course has 18 original holes, each different from the next and is fitted with an all-weather, true-rolling putting surface and smooth borders. It rewards accurate putting and cleverly played rebound shots.
Fairway features include gentle slopes and undulations as well as water hazards, bridge and other obstacles. The site has been landscaped with rockeries and has a ’rushing’ watercourse with a central fountain and waterfall. A round of golf costs £3.50 for all ages.
The course has been designed to British Minigolf Association standards, www.bmga.co.uk, and is DDA (Disability Discrimination Act) compliant.
Ian Russell, Director Wroxham Barns said: “Our new adventure golf course is a superb addition to Wroxham Barns. It is visually very exciting and provides a fun challenge for mini golfers of all ages. We are looking forward to getting involved in the mini golf world and hope to host competitions before too long”
Chris Harding said: “Wroxham Barns is a great place to visit. I am sure that the new course, which is an excellent facility, will be enjoyed by mini golfers of all abilities.”
Wroxham Barns, is open daily 10am to 5pm, www.wroxhambarns.co.uk, tel. 01603 783762 and is 10 miles from Norwich, take A1151 to Wroxham then follow brown and white tourist signs for 1.5miles on the Tunstead road.
|
|
Innovative interactive “totem” unveiled at Norwich Castle
(01/08/2008)
|
|
|
The first in a series of innovative interactive information guides or “totems” for Norwich was installed yesterday (31 July), in front of Norwich Castle.
As well as showing information and pictures of Norwich Castle, the totem is fitted with pioneering Hypertag technology, allowing passers-by to access additional information and images about the building directly onto their mobile phone or handheld computer free of charge.
It is the first time that the technology has been used in this way in the UK, meaning Norwich’s residents and tourists will be among the first in the world to use the technology to learn about and understand places of interest as they wander around the city.
The totems will be used to deliver information, images and film quickly, providing passers-by with something they can take away and access on an ongoing basis. All passers-by have to do is activate the infra-red or switch their Bluetooth setting to discoverable on their mobile phone. The Hypertag – a small electronic tag embedded in the totem – then delivers the interactive information guide to the phone in the form of a Java application. This is all done without the need for a mobile network connection and is free of charge.
The totems are being installed near the buildings that make up Norwich 12 – some of Norwich’s most iconic buildings and the UK’s finest collection of individually outstanding heritage buildings spanning the last millennium. As well as Norwich Castle, the totems will rolled out to Norwich Cathedral, The Great Hospital, The Halls – St Andrew’s and Blackfriars’, The Guildh | | | |