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  • 21 Aug, 2019

  • By, Wikipedia

ExCel Arena
ExCeL London (an abbreviation for Exhibition Centre 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 km) site on the northern quay of the Royal Victoria Dock in London Docklands, located between Canary Wharf and London City Airport.

History

Aerial view of ExCeL in 2008, before its first extension

The Centre was designed by Moxley Architects and built by Sir Robert McAlpine. It opened in November 2000. In May 2008 it was acquired by Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company. Phase II of development, which included building London's first International Convention Centre (ICC) and creating an "eastern arrival experience", was completed on 1 May 2010. Phase 3 is expected to be completed in October 2024.

In 2015, CentrEd at ExCeL was opened, which expanded the centre's facilities to incorporate training and meeting space near the western entrance of the venue overlooking Royal Victoria Dock.

The Royal Victoria was closed to commercial traffic in 1981, but it is still accessible to shipping. The Centre's waterfront location allows visiting vessels to moor alongside the Centre. An example of this is HMS Sutherland visiting the 2005 London Boat Show.

The design of the exhibition building consists of two column-free, rectangular, sub-divisible halls of approximately 479,493 sq. ft. (44,546 sq. m.), on either side of a central boulevard containing catering facilities and information points. There are also three sets of function rooms, one overlooking the water, another above the western end of the central boulevard, and the third on the north side of the building which are used for smaller meetings, seminars, presentations and corporate hospitality. The property is surrounded by six hotels, bars and restaurants, and 1,800 parking spaces situated underneath the property with 85 accessible spaces.

ExCeL London has hosted numerous consumer and trade, private and public events, including exhibitions, conferences, concerts, weddings and religious events. Among these have been WorldSkills London 2011, the London Boat Show, the British International Motor Show, Grand Designs Live, the Carole Nash MCN Motorcycle Show, MCM London Comic Con, the London International Music Show, Star Wars Celebration Europe, London Marathon registration, the World Travel Market, The Clothes Show London, Defence Security and Equipment International (DSEi), The Dive Show, the Global Peace and Unity Event, the 2009 G-20 London Summit, IP Expo Europe and Summer in the City.

In 2011 ExCeL London was awarded the Business Super brand, and welcomed its 20 million visitor on 18 June 2014. ExCeL has also been awarded 'Venue of the Year' on several occasions at various industry ceremonies. In 2012, ExCeL hosted several events for the Olympics and Paralympics, and has since erected a "legacy wall" featuring the handprints of athletes who won Gold at the venue and the former Mayor of London Boris Johnson.

In 2014 ExCeL hosted the Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict, chaired by American actress and UN Special Envoy Angelina Jolie and attended by 79 ministers from 123 country delegations.

Aerial view of ExCeL in 2015, after its Phase 2 extension

From 1 to 8 July 2019, 150 events took place as part of London Climate Action Week 2019.

It was announced on 24 March 2020 that the Centre was to be temporarily converted into the 4,000-bed NHS Nightingale Hospital as part of the response to the 2020 coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Military engineers and contractors supported the erection of the facility, and army medics assisted the NHS nurses, doctors and other staff. The Nightingale was opened on 3 April 2020 by Charles, Prince of Wales via video link.

Transport

ExCeL London is served by two Docklands Light Railway (DLR) stations, which span the full 600-metre length of the venue. The western entrance is directly linked to Custom House for ExCeL station, which serves the Platinum Suite and the event halls and is located next to the glass pyramid. Since 24 May 2022, the western entrance of ExCeL has been served by the Elizabeth line (known as the Crossrail project during construction), connecting the venue to central London in 12 minutes.

The eastern entrance is connected to Prince Regent station. The eastern entrance serves the International Convention Centre (ICC at ExCeL), which was opened in 2010 by then-Mayor Boris Johnson and is London's first and currently only ICC. During major shows with large visitor attendances, extra shuttle trains are run between the venue and Canning Town station, which connects with London Underground's Jubilee line. Since June 2012, the Emirates Air Line cable car now links ExCeL to The O2 on the Greenwich Peninsula.

ExCeL London is also located near London City Airport station, which is linked by the DLR and a number of dual-carriageway roads which also provide onward access to the office and commercial district of Canary Wharf.

Sustainability and corporate social responsibility

ExCeL London participates in the UN Global Compact Scheme, the world's largest corporate sustainability initiative which invites companies to align with universal principles on human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption. As part of this scheme, ExCeL hosts annual events to communicate on progress addressing the issues of Human Rights, Labour, Environment and Anti-Corruption. Since joining the scheme in August 2007, ExCeL has undertaken a series of initiatives to reduce energy usage, increase recycling efforts and increase transparency across the business, such as the introduction of a whistleblowing hotline in May 2015.

ExCeL publishes details of its corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts publicly in the UN Global Compact report and on their website. Currently ExCeL invests in the local community of Newham by supporting select charities, chiefly Newham All Star Sports Academy (NASSA) and Community Food Enterprise (CFE). ExCeL also provides space free of charge to local schools and sports teams, in addition to hosting an annual event called 'ExCeL in the Arts' for local children to attend. In 2016, ExCeL welcomed London celebrity chef, musician and entrepreneur Levi Roots, who in collaboration with a local food initiative organised a cooking class for local children

Sport

Olympics

ExCeL London hosting table tennis events at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

For the 2012 Summer Olympics, ExCeL London was divided into five sports halls with capacities ranging from 5,000 to 7,000 that were used for boxing, fencing, judo, taekwondo, table tennis, weightlifting, and wrestling.

Boxing

ExCeL hosted two boxing matches on 10 December 2005, the first between British heavyweights Danny Williams and Audley Harrison and the second between Amir Khan and Daniel Thorpe.

ExCeL also hosted the boxing match on 22 April 2008 between Amir Khan and Gairy St. Clair for the World Boxing Organization intercontinental lightweight title, and the boxing match on 29 November 2014 between Derek Chisora and Tyson Fury in a World Boxing Organization heavyweight championship eliminator.

Triathlon

The Virgin Active London Triathlon is held at ExCeL London on an annual basis, with the cycling and running legs taking place within and around the venue and the swim taking place in Royal Victoria Dock, adjacent to ExCeL.

Tennis

ExCeL will host the inaugural Ultimate Tennis Showdown grand final in December 2023, a series of exhibition matches held during the professional tennis off-season.

Motorsport

ExCeL London Circuit

Formula E Circuit (2023–present)

Formula E Circuit (2022)

Original Formula E Circuit (2021)
LocationCustom House, Docklands, London, E16
United Kingdom
Time zoneGMT (UTC+0)
BST (April–October, UTC+1)
FIA Grade3E
Opened24 July 2021; 3 years ago (2021-07-24)
Major eventsCurrent:
Formula E
London ePrix (2021–present)
Websitehttps://www.excel.london/
Formula E Circuit (2023–present)
Length2.086 km (1.296 miles)
Turns20
Race lap record1:11.331 (United Kingdom Jake Hughes, Nissan e-4ORCE 04, 2024, F-E)
Formula E Circuit (2022)
Length2.141 km (1.330 miles)
Turns22
Race lap record1:14.349 (New Zealand Nick Cassidy, Audi e-tron FE07, 2022, F-E)
Original Formula E Circuit (2021)
Length2.252 km (1.400 miles)
Turns22
Race lap record1:21.635 (Netherlands Robin Frijns, Audi e-tron FE07, 2021, F-E)

The Formula E London ePrix was held with two back to back races at ExCel, in July 2021 with part of the circuit running around the arena and part of the circuit in the exhibition hall itself. It was also due to be held in 2020, however the event was cancelled after the ExCeL was repurposed as a temporary NHS hospital named NHS Nightingale, to deal with the Coronavirus pandemic. It held the final 2 rounds of the 2022-23 Formula E World Championship, after holding the penultimate round in 2022.

COVID-19 pandemic

Main article: NHS Nightingale Hospital London

On 24 March 2020, the ExCeL was announced as a temporary NHS hospital, containing 5000 beds and named NHS Nightingale, to deal with the Coronavirus pandemic. This alternate care site was planned to shut down in early May 2020, but was also used as a mass vaccination centre as part of the COVID-19 vaccination programme from 11 January 2021.

Other events

ExCeL waterfront south side.

ExCeL London has hosted the following events:

  • Since 2001, the biannual UK arms fair DSEi.
  • In 2003 filmmaker Dominic Leung filmed the music video of Coldplay's single Clocks here with a laser show in front of a staged audience including university students.
  • Each May and October, The MCM London Comic Con multi-genre convention is held at ExCeL.
  • In 2005, the Bollywood cultural event, the 2005 Zee Cine Awards for the first time in the event's history.
  • British International Motor Show 2006 and 2008 attracting over 400,000 visitors to the venue and included a Music Festival with live performances in a 5,000 capacity purpose-built arena each night of the motor show.
  • Between 27–29 April 2007, the 2007 London Guitar Show (LGS). The show featured two masterclasses on the Saturday with Steve Vai, in which time he answered questions asked by fans through the LGS website prior to the show, and from fans at the masterclass.
  • Between 13–15 July 2007, it hosted Star Wars Celebration Europe; the first Star Wars fan event of its kind held outside the United States which attracted nearly 40,000 visitors over the three days.
  • In October 2007, the 2007 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards, the first time it was held in the UK
  • In 2007, was the Permanence – the operational and media headquarters – for the Grand Départ of the Tour de France.
  • On 26 April 2008, the Bollywood cultural event, the 2008 Zee Cine Awards for the second time.
  • On 27 May 2008, the Ahmadiyya Khilafat (Caliphate) Centenary was held.
  • On 31 October 2008, Stuff Live, a yearly show sponsored by the magazine, What Hi-Fi? Sound and Vision.
  • On 2 April 2009, annual G-20 Leaders' Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy, commonly called The London Summit 2009, the largest gathering of world leaders London has seen since the first United Nations General Assembly in 1946.
  • The 2009 G20 London summit on Stability, Growth & Jobs
  • Between 29–31 May 2009, Clothes Show London returned to the capital.
  • In 2009 and 2010, it played host to the London audition stages of the ITV singer search programme The X Factor.
  • Between 1–2 May 2010, The X Factor held open auditions which attracted over 10,000 people.
  • On Sunday 16 December 2012 it played host to the 2012 BBC Sports Personality of the Year.
  • In late 2012 Olly Murs filmed the video to Army of Two here.
  • From 22–24 November, the ExCeL played host to the Doctor Who Celebration convention, in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the BBC television series, Doctor Who.
  • In April 2014, 49th annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of the Liver.
  • The building's halls are used by University College London and King's College London for many of their exams.
  • Between 14–18 August 2014, Loncon 3, the 72nd World Science Fiction Convention.
  • BRICK 2014, a Lego event for Lego fans, took place between 27 and 30 November 2014. The event also happened in December 2015.
  • The ICC Auditorium also hosted Miss World 2014 on 14 December 2014.
  • It hosted Miss World 2014 finals on 14 December.
  • On 4 and 5 July 2015, the ExCeL hosted Minecon, the fan convention of the video game Minecraft, for the year.
  • Between 15–17 July 2016, it hosted Star Wars Celebration Europe III.
  • ExCeL hosted IP Expo Europe on 5–6 October 2016, Europe's largest IT event
  • It hosted Redeemed Christian Church of God Festival of Life twice a year. It was last held on 21 October 2016.
  • It hosted the 2016 BBC Music Awards on 12 December, broadcast live on BBC One.
  • ExCeL hosted the inaugural RTX London between 14–15 October 2017, as well as the upcoming RTX London between 15–16 September 2018.
  • ExCeL hosted the final weekend of the 14th series of The X Factor on 2–3 December 2017.
  • ExCel also hosted Miss World 2019 finals on 14 December.
  • University College London has held its graduation ceremonies at Excel since 2022 (including the postponed 2020 and 2021 graduations).
  • The 2022 Pokémon World Championships was held at ExCeL on 18–21 August 2022, becoming the first edition of the World Championships to be held outside of North America, as well as the first edition to be a four-day event.
  • ExCeL hosted the RuPaul's DragCon UK event, from 6–8 January 2023.
  • Star Wars Celebration Europe IV was held at ExCeL from 7–10 April 2023.

Protests

In 2017 and 2019 there were demonstrations outside ExCel to protest against the DSEI fair. In 2017 a number of arrests were made for obstructing the highway.

References

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  9. ^ "CentrEd at ExCeL". ExCeL London. Archived from the original on 29 December 2015. Retrieved 24 May 2016.
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  20. ^ Gold, Harry (28 March 2020). "Pictures show inside makeshift NHS 'Nightingale' hospital built by Army". cambridgenews. Retrieved 5 April 2020.
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  29. ^ Dunn, Carrie (13 October 2023). "London confirmed as host for UTS Grand Final". Tennis Majors. Archived from the original on 23 November 2023. Retrieved 23 November 2023. ExCel London will stage the eight-man event from December 15-17
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  32. ^ Schraer, Rachel (24 March 2020). "ExCeL Centre to be used as coronavirus hospital". BBC News.
  33. ^ Campbell, Denis; Mason, Rowena (4 May 2020). "London NHS Nightingale hospital will shut next week". The Guardian – via www.theguardian.com.
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  35. ^ "Welcome". DSEI 2023. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
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  42. ^ Farah Sheikh (12 November 2021). "UCL announce in-person graduation ceremonies for 2020 and 2021 graduates". The Tab.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to ExCeL Exhibition Centre.
Preceded by Miss World venues
2014
2019 		Succeeded by
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