Top Award for Botanic Garden’s night light show

Awards - Apr 15

The Night in the Garden event at The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) has been named as one of the best museum projects in the UK at the Museums & Heritage Awards for Excellence.

The project was a magical combination of light and nature – the first outdoor light experience of its kind to be organised by the Garden – was open to visitors between 30 October and 23 November. It was named as the winner in the Trading and Enterprise category at the Awards, presented by comedian and TV personality Marcus Brigstocke yesterday at the Historic State Rooms of 8 Northumberland Avenue in central London.

Accepting the award, RBGE Director of Enterprise Heather Jackson said: “It is a particular honour to be recognised by our peers. Now, our ambition is to build on the success of that inaugural event and create an evolving annual experience that will showcase the Garden and inspire visitors to support the wider research and conservation work of the organisation.”

The Awards are judged by a panel of senior sector professionals including Bernard Donoghue (Director, Association of Leading Visitor Attractions (ALVA), Diane Lees (Director General, Imperial War Museums), Matthew Tanner (Chief Executive of ss Great Britain), Sam Mullins (Director of the London Transport Museum), Maggie Appleton (Chief Executive, RAF Museum), Diana Owen (Director, Shakespeare Birthplace Trust) and Stephen Duncan (Director of Commercial and Tourism, Historic Scotland).

The judges commented: “This organisation successfully managed to maximise the opportunity to generate additional income during a period which was traditionally quiet, managing to attract crowds to the great outdoors during winter, paving the way for a future programme of revenue-generating events.”DSCF3146Now celebrating its thirteenth year, the annual Awards, created by The Museums + Heritage Show, recognise the leading lights of the heritage sector and celebrate excellence and innovation at museums, galleries and visitor attractions across the UK and Europe.

Hundreds of sector professionals joined together at the ceremony – the ‘Oscars’ of the museums and heritage industry – to celebrate the groundbreaking achievements and spectacular projects taking place in cultural attractions over the past 12 months.

Among the night’s big winners were London’s Imperial War Museum’s WW1 galleries that walked away with the top honour of the ‘Best Permanent Exhibition’ accolade. While Michael Day, Chief Executive of the Historic Royal Palaces received the award for Outstanding Contribution by an Individual to the heritage sector.

Other 2015 winners were Kent Life Wildlife Farm Park for Outstanding Customer Service; The Black Country Museum for Project on a Limited Budget and Renfrewshire District Council took the award for the best restoration project for its work to restore the Grand Fountain in Paisley.

The winner of the International Award was Tinker Imagineers from Rotterdam for the DOMunder archaeological visitor experience, while the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh received the Winstan Bond Trophy for Trading and Enterprise.

Other winners included The National Trust for Scotland in Partnership with Historic Scotland & Designers Bright White Ltd which walked away with the Innovations award; Oxford University Museum of Natural History took the top Marketing award and London’s Historic Royal Palace’ ground-breaking installation, Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red was named as the best Temporary or Touring exhibition.

The winners and highly commended entries (listed below) are a reflection of the industry’s resilience. Each museum, cultural and heritage visitor attraction is recognised for its excellence – whether for an innovative and groundbreaking exhibition or for making a considerable achievement on the smallest of budgets.

2015 WINNERS & HIGHLY COMMENDED

OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTION BY AN INDIVIDUAL

Michael Day, Chief Executive, Historic Royal Palaces

CUSTOMER SERVICE AWARD
Sponsored by BDRC Continental

Kent Life Heritage Farm Park: More than a Guest, More than a Vision, More than a Job

Highly Commended: The Lightbox: The Lightbox Front of House Team

INTERNATIONAL AWARD
Sponsored by Martello Media

TINKER imagineers: DOMunder: archaeological visitor experience

Highly Commended: Natura Artis Magistra, Micropia

PROJECT ON A LIMITED BUDGET
Sponsored by Sweett

Black Country Museum: WW1 Greengrocers

Highly Commended: Woodhorn Museum: Stand up for Woodhorn: Making a Case for Comedy in Museums

RESTORATION OR CONSERVATION
Sponsored by FWA Group
· Renfrewshire Council: The Grand Fountain Restoration, Paisley

Highly Commended: Coventry Transport Museum: 1916 Maudslay Subsidy Chassis

WINSTAN BOND TROPHY FOR TRADING & ENTERPRISE
Supported by Association of Independent Museums

Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh: Botanic Lights: Night in the Garden 

INNOVATIONS AWARD
The National Trust for Scotland in Partnership with Historic Scotland & Designers Bright White Ltd: The Battle of Bannockburn Visitor Centre

High;y Commended: Mather & Co on behalf of Manchester City Council: Archives +

MARKETING CAMPAIGN
Sponsored by Volunteer Makers

Oxford University: Museum of Natural History Goes To Town

Highly Cemmended: Imperial War Museums: First World War Galleries

PERMANENT EXHIBITION
Sponsored by Martello Media

Imperial War Museums London and Casson Mann: First World War Galleries

Highly Commended: The National Trust for Scotland in Partnership with Historic Scotland & Designers Bright White Ltd: The Battle of Bannockburn Visitor Centre

EDUCATIONAL INITIATIVE
Sponsored by Arts Award

Imperial War Museums: Transforming Imperial War Museums London Learning Projects – JOINT WINNER

· Shakespeare Birthplace Trust: Shakespeare Week – JOINT WINNER

TEMPORARY OR TOURING EXHIBITION

Historic Royal Palaces: Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red 

Highly Commended: The Royal Air Force Museum: Pilots of the Caribbean

CULTURE PROS PICK
In partnership with The Guardian Culture Professionals Network

People’s History Museum in Manchester

Beltane to spark a celebration of summer

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Organisers have released details of how Edinburgh’s world-famous Beltane Fire Festival will mark the coming of summer tonight.

The Beltane Fire Society, the charity of volunteers who run the event on 30 April each year, say the modern take on an ancient celtic festival will be an incredible spectacle. They want everyone – locals and tourists, old hands and those new to the event – to book tickets now and be part of the celebration.

Beltane Fire Festival takes place as the sun sets on the last night of April (gates open 8pm), at Calton Hill. This year hundreds of specialist volunteer performers will welcome in the summer with more than 40 drums; fire dancing, fire sculptures and flame torches; a huge performance of physical theatre on the national monument; a procession of weird and wonderful characters awakening from their winter sleep around the hill; and the lighting of a huge bonfire by the incarnation of summer, the May Queen, and her counterpart the Green Man.

The 2015 Beltane will incorporate new elements too. Performers will be using fire in dramatic ways not seen before, and there will be the international debut of interactive sound and light performance ‘Spark’.

The festival will also include a faerie garden of giant, glowing toadstools and mushrooms made from candle wax reclaimed from Edinburgh’s underground caves. Also this year, the Incorporation of Candlemakers of Edinburgh will take part in the event. The candlemakers were part of Beltane celebrations in the Capital as far back as medieval times.

Lila O’Leary, Festival Secretary of the Beltane Fire Society, said:  “Beltane is a huge community project, kept alive and reinvented every year by hundreds of dedicated volunteers. The night itself is always special, the result of months of hard work, and this year will be particularly impressive. We’re going all out with dazzling fire performances, mysterious characters and stunning costumes. Beltane is something we are really proud of and we want people across Edinburgh – and Scotland – to get tickets, join us on the night and be proud too.”

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The modern Beltane Fire Festival has run since 1988 and is the spring and summer counterpart to Samhuinn Fire Festival, which is held in the city centre on 31 October. The events are modern re-imaginings of ancient celtic festivals marking the turning seasons. The Beltane Fire Society is a charity run by volunteers, dedicated to marking the fire festivals of the ancient celtic calendar and keeping traditional Scottish skills of street theatre, music and pageantry alive.

Advance tickets are available via The Hub and www.beltane.org from £10 + booking fee, and at the event gate, subject to availability