Former names | Harrogate International Centre |
---|---|
Location | Harrogate, North Yorkshire |
Coordinates | 53°59′48.48″N1°32′29″W / 53.9968000°N 1.54139°W |
Owner | North Yorkshire Council |
Capacity | 2,000 (Auditorium) 1,600 (Exhibition Halls) 600 (Queens Suite) 1,000 (Royal Hall) |
Construction | |
Opened | 1982 |
Renovated | 2009–2014 |
Expanded | 2009–2014 |
Website | |
Official website |
Harrogate Convention Centre is a convention and exhibition centre in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England.
Previously named Harrogate International Centre it was renamed Harrogate Convention Centre in April 2017. [1] The centre has been described as being a "magnet for business conferences" and generates around £60 million per year into the local economy. [2] [3]
While Harrogate had been hosting conferences and exhibitions since the end of the Second World War, the 2,000-seat main auditorium opened in 1982 [4] and was the host of the Eurovision Song Contest 1982. [5] The venue has since expanded to include eight exhibition halls offering 180,000 square feet (17,000 m2) of space as well as ancillary facilities including a hotel. [6] Further expansion took place between 2009 and 2014. [7]
The Royal Hall holds 1,000 people, whereas the Queen's Suite holds up to 600. The Royal Hall is grade II* listed building which is a former concert hall designed by Frank Matcham and Robert Beale. [8]
The between April 2013 and December 2018, the director of the conference centre was Simon Kent. Since January 2019, the director is Paula Lorimer. [9]
In April 2020, the centre was converted into an NHS Nightingale Hospital Yorkshire and the Humber in response to the Coronavirus pandemic of 2020. The centre was furnished with 500 beds. [10]
The Liberal Democrats have held the Liberal Democrat Federal Conference at the centre on six occasions since the party's formation in 1988. [11]
The Green Party held their 2022 Autumn Conference at the centre.
The Eurovision Song Contest was held at the International Centre in 1982. [5]
The Eurovision Song Contest 1982 was the 27th edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Harrogate, United Kingdom, following the country's victory at the 1981 contest with the song "Making Your Mind Up" by Bucks Fizz. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), the contest was held at the Harrogate International Centre on 24 April 1982 and was hosted by English TV presenter and newsreader Jan Leeming.
Harrogate is a spa town in the district and county of North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town is a tourist destination and its visitor attractions include its spa waters and RHS Harlow Carr gardens. 13 miles (21 km) away from the town centre is the Yorkshire Dales National Park and the Nidderdale AONB.
Knaresborough is a market and spa town and civil parish on the River Nidd in North Yorkshire, England. It is three miles east of Harrogate and was in the Borough of Harrogate until April 2023.
The National Exhibition Centre (NEC) is an exhibition centre located in Marston Green, England, near to Birmingham and Solihull. It is near junction 6 of the M42 motorway, and is adjacent to Birmingham Airport and Birmingham International railway station. It was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1976.
The United Kingdom was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1982 with the song "One Step Further", written by Simon Jefferis, and performed by the band Bardo. The British participating broadcaster, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), selected its entry through a national final. In addition, the BBC was also the host broadcaster and staged the event at the Harrogate International Centre in Harrogate, after winning the previous edition with the song "Making Your Mind Up" by Bucks Fizz.
Manchester Central Convention Complex is an exhibition and conference centre converted from the former Manchester Central railway station in Manchester, England. The building has a distinctive arched roof with a span of 64 metres (210 ft) – the second-largest railway station roof span in the United Kingdom, and was granted Grade II* listed building status in 1963.
The SEC Centre is Scotland's largest exhibition centre, located in Glasgow, Scotland. It is one of the three main venues within the Scottish Event Campus.
ExCeL London is an international exhibition and convention centre in the Custom House area of Newham, East London. The facility is situated on a 100-acre (0.40 km2) site on the northern quay of the Royal Victoria Dock in London Docklands, located between Canary Wharf and London City Airport.
The Great Yorkshire Show (GYS) is an agricultural show which takes place on the Great Yorkshire Showground in Harrogate, North Yorkshire in the North of England annually from the second Tuesday of July until the following Friday. It is organised and run by the Yorkshire Agricultural Society (YAS). Since the demise of the Royal Show the GYS has been the largest agricultural show in England, however within the UK it is surpassed by both the Royal Welsh Show and the Royal Highland Show. The show is highly successful and the society generated income of £9.6 million in 2016. A new Hall at the showground, costing £11 million, opened in 2016 and produced more than £1 million of income in its first year.
The Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre (GCCEC) is located on the Gold Coast Highway in Broadbeach, Queensland, Australia. The venue was opened on the 29th of June 2004 at a cost of A$167 million. It is linked by a covered walkway to The Star Gold Coast. Managed by the Star Entertainment Group, the Centre caters for 10 to 6,000 people.
Rotterdam Ahoy is a multi-purpose complex with a convention centre and an indoor arena located in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Opened originally in 1950, the current complex consists of three main venues: a fairs and events hall, a congress and conference centre, and the main venue the Ahoy Arena. The latter opened on 15 January 1971 and is the largest multi-purpose venue in the Netherlands, with a capacity of 16,426 as of May 2019.
Expo Tel Aviv (formerly the Israel Trade Fairs and Convention Center and later the Tel Aviv Convention Center, commonly referred to as Ganei HaTaarucha or the Tel Aviv Fairgrounds, is a fairground complex on Rokach Boulevard in northern Tel Aviv, Israel used as a venue for concerts, exhibitions, trade fairs and conferences.
Liverpool Arena, known for sponsorship reasons as the M&S Bank Arena and previously the Echo Arena, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the city centre of Liverpool, England. The venue hosts live music, comedy performances and sporting events, and forms part of Liverpool event campus ACC Liverpool – an interconnected arena, exhibition and convention centre. The venue serves a regional population of 2.5 million people and over 6.6 million across England's North West.
Wembley Conference Centre was a conference centre in Wembley Park, London, England, that existed from 1977 to 2006, located next to Wembley Arena.
The 2004 Harrogate Council election took place on 10 June 2004 to elect members of Harrogate Borough Council in North Yorkshire, England. One third of the council was up for election and the Conservative Party stayed in overall control of the council.
The 2006 Harrogate Council election took place on 4 May 2006 to elect members of Harrogate Borough Council in North Yorkshire, England. One third of the council was up for election and the Conservative party lost overall control of the council to no overall control.
The Royal Hall is a Grade II* listed performance hall and theatre, located in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England.
COVID-19 hospitalsin the United Kingdom were temporary hospitals set up in the United Kingdom and overseas territories as part of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The NHS Nightingale Hospital Yorkshire and the Humber is one of the temporary NHS Nightingale Hospitals set up by NHS England in 2020 to help to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. The hospital was constructed inside the Harrogate Convention Centre, Harrogate, and from 4 June 2020 was repurposed as a radiology diagnostic clinic.