33-499: Radiolympia , also known as the Radio Show , was a pioneering exhibition of radio equipment, latterly television equipment, held annually at Olympia in London, England, in the 1920s to 1940s, except for a period of interruption during World War II . The first such exhibition was held in 1926. On 26 August 1936, the first high-definition standard (Baird 240 lines) television transmission
66-536: A London Underground station. The direct District Line spur to the station only runs at weekends. The complex first opened in 1886. The Grand Hall and Pillar Hall were completed in 1885. The National Hall annexe was completed in 1923, and in 1930 the Empire Hall was added. After World War II , the West London exhibition hall was in single ownership with the larger nearby Earls Court Exhibition Centre . The latter
99-585: A much larger scale and made more easily accessible by railway from across London and the rest of the country. The site chosen was a former market garden in West Kensington, immediately adjacent to Addison Road station , already a major passenger station on the West London Railway, which became an important method of transport for visitors to Olympia. The building was branded as Olympia even before it opened as its commercial rationale quickly evolved beyond
132-597: A reaping machine that was sent from the United States. Admission prices to the Crystal Palace varied according to the date of visit, with ticket prices decreasing as the parliamentary season drew to an end and London traditionally emptied of wealthy individuals. Prices varied from two guineas (£200 in 2015) (three guineas for a man) for a season ticket, or £1 per day (for the first two days only), then reducing to five shillings per day (until 22 May). The admission price
165-761: A solemn place of prayer clad in red and green textile and the Imamat crest adorned with fresh flowers. Olympia Hall was the venue for the Aga Khan's silver jubilee visit to UK on 5 July 1983. The darbar was attended by members of the Imamat family. Great Exhibition The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations , also known as the Great Exhibition or the Crystal Palace Exhibition (in reference to
198-468: A teenager, later said he refused to attend the Exhibition on the grounds of taste. The opening music, under the superintendence of William Sterndale Bennett , was directed by George Thomas Smart . Organised by Howard Staunton , the first international chess tournament took place at the Exhibition. The world's first soft drink , Schweppes , was the official sponsor of the event. The Great Exhibition of
231-594: The Olympia Exhibition Centre , is an exhibition centre , event space and conference centre in West Kensington , in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham , London , England. A range of international trade and consumer exhibitions, conferences and sporting events are staged at the venue. There is an adjacent railway station at Kensington (Olympia) which is both a London Overground station, and
264-469: The 20th Century, however its distinctive façade was listed. In May 2021, demolition started on the non-listed parts of Olympia Events as part of a comprehensive mix-used redevelopment of the complex by its current owners, while still retaining significant exhibition space. In May 2021, the Olympia Theatre was announced with 1,575 seats, making it the largest new theatre in London since the completion of
297-458: The Great Exhibition was a platform on which countries from around the world could display their achievements, Britain sought to prove its own superiority. The British exhibits at the Great Exhibition "held the lead in almost every field where strength, durability, utility and quality were concerned, whether in iron and steel, machinery or textiles." Britain also sought to provide the world with
330-524: The National Theatre in 1976. This is in addition to previously announced and consented hotels, rehearsal spaces, cinemas, 4,000 seat music venue, retail, dining and public spaces. The major 21st Century redevelopment of Olympia is within the same site boundaries as the historic event spaces. Olympia Hall was the venue for the Aga Khan 's UK Padhramni from 1–7 September 1979. Olympia Hall was transformed to
363-451: The Queen in allowing this trumpery must strike every sensible and well-thinking mind, and I am astonished the ministers themselves do not insist on her at least going to Osborne during the Exhibition, as no human being can possibly answer for what may occur on the occasion. The idea ... must shock every honest and well-meaning Englishman. But it seems everything is conspiring to lower us in
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#1733085382136396-583: The United Kingdom, and around the world. The Olympia Exhibition Centre consists of: In 2003, The Grand Hall and the Pillar Hall of 1885, designed by Coe and Edmeston, were given historic status, listed at Grade II* for their historic interest and their architectural value. Olympia Central, a large concrete building in the Moderne architectural style was not fully listed due to the number of changes made through
429-523: The Works of Industry of All Nations was organised by Prince Albert , Henry Cole , Francis Henry, George Wallis , Wentworth Dilke , and other members of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce as a celebration of modern industrial technology and design. It was arguably a response to the highly effective French Industrial Exposition of 1844 : indeed, its prime motive
462-612: The area to the south of the exhibition, nicknamed Albertopolis , alongside the Imperial Institute . The remaining surplus was used to set up an educational trust to provide grants and scholarships for industrial research; it continues to do so today. The exhibition caused controversy as its opening approached. Some conservatives feared that the mass of visitors might become a revolutionary mob. The English-born King Ernest Augustus I of Hanover , shortly before his death, wrote to Lord Strangford about it: The folly and absurdity of
495-561: The eyes of Europe. In modern times, the Great Exhibition is a symbol of the Victorian Age , and its thick catalogue, illustrated with steel engravings, is a primary source for High Victorian design. A memorial to the exhibition, crowned with a statue of Prince Albert , is located behind the Royal Albert Hall . It is inscribed with statistics from the exhibition, including the number of visitors and exhibitors (British and foreign), and
528-484: The form of a massive glass house, 1848 feet long by 454 feet wide (about 563 metres by 138 metres) and was constructed from cast iron -frame components and glass made almost exclusively in Birmingham and Smethwick . From the interior, the building's large size was emphasized with trees and statues; this served, not only to add beauty to the spectacle, but also to demonstrate man's triumph over nature. The Crystal Palace
561-406: The hope of a better future. Europe had just emerged from "two difficult decades of political and social upheaval," and now Britain hoped to show that technology, particularly its own, was the key to a better future. Sophie Forgan says of the exhibition that "Large, piled-up 'trophy' exhibits in the central avenue revealed the organisers' priorities; they generally put art or colonial raw materials in
594-448: The most prestigious place. Technology and moving machinery were popular, especially working exhibits." She also notes that visitors "could watch the entire process of cotton production from spinning to finished cloth. Scientific instruments were found in class X, and included electric telegraphs, microscopes, air pumps and barometers, as well as musical, horological and surgical instruments." A special building, or "The Great Shalimar ",
627-445: The opening day, all of which were bought. To attract future customers from the working classes, the newly expanding railways offered highly discounted tickets for people to travel from distant parts of the country, and special rates were offered to parties, often led by the local vicar. Those too poor to travel lined up by the rail tracks to watch the long trains of open carriages steaming past. The Great Exhibition of 1851 encouraged
660-472: The production of souvenirs. Several manufacturers produced stereoscope cards that provided a three-dimensional view of the exhibition. These paper souvenirs were printed lithographic cards which were hand-coloured and held together by cloth to give a three-dimensional view of the event. They offered a miniature view of the Crystal Palace when one viewed the cards through the peep holes on the front cover. Visitors purchased these souvenirs so that they could relive
693-435: The profit made. A range of medals were produced and awarded to exhibitors, jurists and providers of services. The official descriptive and illustrated catalogue of the event lists exhibitors not only from throughout Britain but also from its "Colonies and Dependencies" and 44 "Foreign States". Numbering 13,000 in total, the exhibits included a Jacquard loom , an envelope machine, kitchen appliances, steel-making displays and
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#1733085382136726-488: The staging of agricultural or military shows into an open-ended exploitation of what was the largest such venue in England at the time. Intended as a large indoor space for exhibitions, tournaments, sporting competitions and entertainments of various kinds, the building followed in the tradition of large-scale exhibition halls popularised by the Great Exhibition in 1851, the inspiration for various imitators in London, elsewhere in
759-466: The temporary structure in which it was held ), was an international exhibition that took place in Hyde Park , London, from 1 May to 15 October 1851. It was the first in a series of world's fairs , exhibitions of culture and industry that became popular in the 19th century. The event was organised by Henry Cole and Prince Albert , husband of Victoria , Queen of the United Kingdom. Famous people of
792-466: The time attended the Great Exhibition, including Charles Darwin , Karl Marx , Michael Faraday (who assisted with the planning and judging of exhibits), Samuel Colt , members of the Orléanist royal family and the writers Charlotte Brontë , Charles Dickens , Lewis Carroll , George Eliot , Alfred Tennyson , and William Makepeace Thackeray . The future Arts and Crafts proponent William Morris , then
825-598: The time—visited the Great Exhibition. The average daily attendance was 42,831 with a peak of 109,915 on 7 October. Thomas Cook arranged travel to the event for 150,000 people and it was important in his company's development. The event made a surplus of £186,000 (£33,221,701.65 in 2023), which was used to found the Victoria and Albert Museum , the Science Museum and the Natural History Museum . They were all built in
858-538: The venues. In January 2013, a £40 million investment was completed and the company re-launched with a new brand; subsequently the business was awarded the Best Marketing Campaign at the Exhibition News Awards 2014. In May 2021, demolition work started at the site as part of a significant overhaul of the complex, which includes new construction and refurbishment of listed historic aspects. Olympia
891-423: Was an enormous success, considered an architectural marvel, but also an engineering triumph that showed the importance of the exhibition itself. The building was later moved and re-erected in 1854 in enlarged form at Sydenham Hill in south London, an area that was renamed Crystal Palace . It was destroyed by fire on 30 November 1936. Six million people—equivalent to a third of the entire population of Britain at
924-455: Was built in the 1930s as a rival to Olympia. In 2008, ownership of the two venues passed from P&O to Capco Plc which sold it off as a going concern, while Earls Court was being demolished in 2014 as part of an ambitious regeneration scheme to create more luxury housing. In 2012, Olympia celebrated 125 years of events by commissioning British artists Peter Blake , Rob Ryan , Sanna Annukka and Paul Hicks to create their interpretations of
957-415: Was built to house the show. It was designed by Joseph Paxton with support from structural engineer Charles Fox , the committee overseeing its construction including Isambard Kingdom Brunel , and went from its organisation to the grand opening in just nine months. The building was architecturally adventurous, drawing on Paxton's experience designing greenhouses for the sixth Duke of Devonshire . It took
990-470: Was for Britain to make "clear to the world its role as industrial leader". Prince Albert, Queen Victoria's consort, was an enthusiastic promoter of the self-financing exhibition; the government was persuaded to form the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 to establish the viability of hosting such an exhibition. Queen Victoria visited three times with her family, and 34 times on her own. Although
1023-623: Was made in a test by the BBC to the exhibition from the BBC's studios in Alexander Palace. The day after, the Marconi-EMI ( 405 lines ) system was used. The record attendance was 238,000 in 1934. 51°29′47″N 0°12′35″W / 51.49639°N 0.20972°W / 51.49639; -0.20972 Olympia, London Olympia Events , formerly known as Olympia London and sometimes referred to as
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1056-697: Was originally conceived in the early 1880s as the National Agricultural Hall, a larger version of the Royal Agricultural Hall (1861–62, Grade II) in Islington. The project of building a National Agricultural Hall was conceived by Edwyn Sherard Burnaby (1830-1883), MP for Leicestershire North, who primarily wanted to see shows such as the military Royal Tournament , held at the Royal Agricultural Hall in Islington since 1880, staged on
1089-418: Was then further reduced to one shilling (£5 in 2015), per day—except on Fridays, when it was set at two shillings and six pence, and on Saturdays when it remained at five shillings. The one-shilling ticket proved most successful among the industrial classes, with four and a half million shillings (£22,000,000 in 2015) being taken from attendees in this manner. Two thousand five hundred tickets were printed for
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