Royal Windsor Horse Show’s 2022 return to the private grounds of Windsor Castle delighted packed crowds in Arena grandstands and structures, with four days of Five Star equestrian competition and a star-studded evening ‘Platinum Jubilee Celebration’ over four nights, which marked the first official event of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, May 12-15, 2022.
Arena’s seating and structures divisions collaborated to provide HPower with spectator, rider and media facilities for the event. Four covered grandstands housed 4,254 tip-up seats, giving audiences great views of the main Castle Arena performance area. Across the four-day event, the 45m curved Arcus roofs provided fans shade from the blazing sun and protection from rain to watch the cream of the world’s horses and riders competing and showcasing their talents.
Nick Brooks-Ward, HPower Operations Director, states:
“Since 2016 The Arena Group have been our principal suppliers of both seating and structures. Bearing in mind that we have had to provide changing rooms, dining room facilities and offices for 1,300 participants and seat over 4,500 people for both The Royal Windsor Horse Show during the day and The Platinum Jubilee Celebration in the evenings, the Arena Group certainly had their work cut out. Everything was delivered on time and worked perfectly, and we cannot praise them highly enough. With ever changing build schedules they managed to deliver everything that was needed with a smile.”
Across the event site, Laurence Young project managed the installation of a variety of Arena’s structures, including the organisers and media facilities, VIP restaurants, riders changing facilities and catering. Close to the site was an exclusive VIP compound and on a separate course, the Endurance Competition facilities. Joe Stimpson undertook the corresponding role for the seating, with five smaller grandstands for fans to watch the action in the four smaller arenas at the Show. The teams were on site for five weeks to install the infrastructure, returning the popular park for public use in just two weeks.
Tom Evans, CEO Arena EMEA comments:
“Being a part of this event was a true privilege. Arena has a strong heritage spanning decades with both Royal Windsor Horse Show and Royal Cultural celebrations, so it was very special to be working with HPower, suppling grandstand seating and event structures to help create a truly memorable evet of the highest standard.”
To honour Her Majesty The Queen’s remarkable service to the country for the last 70 years, The Platinum Jubilee Celebration, hosted by Royal Windsor Horse Show was an evening theatrical arena spectacular, named ‘A Gallop through History’, reflecting Her Majesty’s love of horses. Dame Helen Mirren, Damian Lewis, Omid Djalili and Tom Cruise lead an all-star cast of British and international talent for Sunday’s performance, which was broadcast live by ITV.
Royal Windsor Horse Show has always been highly favoured by Her Majesty, who has attended every edition of the Show since its inception in 1943. The Royal Family were in attendance each evening, with Her Majesty The Queen attending on Friday for the horse show during the day and on Sunday evening, for the 90-minute phenomenon showcasing 500 horses, 1,300 performers and a tri-service orchestra supported by members of the National Symphony Orchestra.
