LIGHT UP BLUE FOR UNICEF’S NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION FOR CHILDREN

The titanium fireworks London Eye crew have donated to UNICEF. You can download the app and share your #HappyBlueYear photos and make your donation to UNICEF. #LondonNYE

PRESS RELEASE Edinburgh Hogmanay Unquie Events

HAPPY BLUE YEAR

EDINBURGH’S HOGMANAY & LONDON NEW YEAR CELEBRATIONS

LIGHT UP BLUE FOR UNICEF’S NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION FOR CHILDREN

This year for the first time Edinburgh’s Hogmanay, which is produced by Unique Events on behalf of the City of Edinburgh Council, will be joining up with the Mayor of London’s New Year celebrations in support of Unicef’s New Year’s Resolution for Children.  In this unprecedented partnership, over 175,000 of revellers at two of the world’s most famous New Year’s Eve celebrations will join together in a unifying moment, aimed at raising awareness and helping children whose lives have been turned upside down by the conflict in Syria. Millions of people watching the events from home will also have the opportunity to get involved.

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Key landmarks across both cities will be lighting up blue for Unicef.  In Edinburgh, Edinburgh Castle, the Camera Obscura, Jenners Department Store and the statue of Queen Victoria on the roof of the Royal Scottish Academy will be illuminated Unicef blue while lighting up in London will be the Shard, the Coca-Cola London Eye, the National Theatre and the Golden Jubilee Walkways. Both cities will hold a minute of blue fireworks – in Edinburgh at 10.00pm in the middle of the world famous Street Party with a specially designed display to mark the occasion.

Unicef is the Edinburgh’s Hogmanay official charity for 2015/16, and will benefit from all fundraising activities undertaken across the Edinburgh’s Hogmanay events on 30th and 31st December.   The leading children’s organisation will receive a 5% donation from every torch sold for the Torchlight Procession on Wednesday 30th December and partygoers at the Street Party, Concert in the Gardens and Old Town Ceilidh on Thursday 31st December will be encouraged to support Unicef’s New Year’s Resolution via a special screen message.

Revellers across Edinburgh’s Hogmanay can support ’Unicef’s New Year’s Resolution for Children in a number of ways.  In addition to carrying a torch for Unicef in the Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Torchlight Procession, donating online when booking tickets or texting MOUTH to 70444 to donate £3, they can put their money where their mouth is and download the video of a special New Year’s song from http://resolution.unicef.org.uk and join thousands of others singing along and sharing across social media using #HappyBlueYear.

All donations to Unicef made by New Year revellers in Edinburgh and London will be matched by the UK Government, meaning that donations will go even further to help save more children’s lives this winter.

Pete Irvine, Director of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay, said “While Hogmanay is a time for celebration it’s also a chance to look forward and a moment to reflect on the lives of others less fortunate.  Unicef needs to raise vital funds for children caught in the war in Syria, and we encourage revellers across all the Edinburgh’s Hogmanay and London events to put their money where their mouth is and support the Unicef New Year’s Resolution for Children.”

Unicef’s Deputy Executive Director Catherine Cottrell said: “Unicef’s New Year’s Resolution for Children aims to bring people together to make a special promise to help keep children safe. Together we can make a resolution that we can all keep and help children whose lives have been turned upside down by the conflict in Syria. We are delighted that two of the world’s greatest cities Edinburgh and London are uniting for Unicef’s Resolution in what promises to be a very special and memorable New Year’s Eve.”

Edinburgh’s Hogmanay promises to kick off 2016 in style.  The three day Festival will start with the Torchlight Procession on Monday 30 December, when 10,000 torchbearers will process from George IV Bridge to Calton Hill for a spectacular Son et Lumière fireworks finale. The celebrations continue on 31 December with the world famous Street Party, Concert in the Gardens and the Old Town Ceilidh, featuring live music from Biffy Clyro, Maximo Park, Slaves and Idlewild among others. On 1 January the brave can wash away the excesses of the night before with a dip in the River Forth at the Stoats Loony Dook, meanwhile in Edinburgh’s Old Town there’s something for all the family at Scot:lands, a free festival within a festival, featuring the very best of Scottish music, spoken word and performance in 11 hidden locations around the city.

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Tickets for Concert in the Gardens, the Candlelit Concert, the Old Town Ceilidh and places at the 30th Anniversary Stoats Loony Dook are already SOLD OUT.  Tickets for the world famous Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Street Party and torch vouchers for the Torchlight Procession can be purchased online at www.edinburghshogmanay.com; by calling Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Box Office on 0844 573 8455 or by calling into the Hogmanay Box Office at The Fringe Office, 180 High Street, Edinburgh.

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For further information please contact:

Frances Sutton, Press Manager, Edinburgh’s Hogmanay

UNIQUE EVENTS

press@edinburghshogmanay.com or 07841 579481

Notes to Editors:

About Fundraising Activity at Edinburgh’s Hogmanay:

Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Revellers are supporting the official Hogmanay Charity Unicef by:

  • A 5% donation from the sale of every torch in the Torchlight Procession
  • A bucket collection at the Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Torchlight Procession
  • An Option to donate direct when buying tickets to the event from edinburghshogmanay.com
  • Text to Donate which is highlighted on screens through the Street Party Arena on 31st December

About Unicef

  • Unicef works for more children in more countries than any other organisation. Unicef ensures more of the world’s children are fed, vaccinated, educated and protected than any other organisation. We have done more to influence laws, policies and customs to help protect children than anyone else in history. We get things done. And we’re not going to stop until the world is a safe place for all our children. Unicef UK raises funds to protect children in danger, transform their lives and build a safer world for tomorrow’s children. As a registered charity we raise funds through donations from individuals, organisations and companies and we lobby and campaign to keep children safe. Unicef UK also runs programmes in schools, hospitals and with local authorities in the UK. For more information please visit unicef.org.uk.
  • Unicef UK has produced a special New Year’s Eve song. You can watch our New Year song and join thousands of others singing along and sharing. And you can put your money where your mouth is and support Unicef’s New Year’s Resolution by donating £3 to help keep Syria’s children safe this winter. Download the video from our website http://resolution.unicef.org.uk Download the song for free. Then simply hold your phone up to your mouth, press play and let the phone sing along to the song while you dance to the beat. Once you are happy with your mouth-tastic performance, just get a friend to film you, or film yourself and a bunch of friends (your mouth-mob) on your phone or web-cam.  Next you can upload it on the social media channel of your choice, using the hashtag #HappyBlueYear and remember to tag Unicef UK in your posts. Make sure you nominate your friends and get them all to join in and donate to Unicef New Year’s Resolution for Children
  • Donations to Unicef UK’s will be doubled by the UK Government, meaning that your gift will go even further to help save more children’s lives this winter. Donate to  Unicef’s New Year’s Resolution for Children at uk/NYE

About Edinburgh’s Hogmanay:

Edinburgh’s Hogmanay 2015/16 is funded by:

Principal Funding Partner – City of Edinburgh Council

Major Funding Partners – EventScotland, Scotland’s Winter Festivals and the Scottish Government’s Edinburgh Festivals EXPO Fund

Major Partners – G4S and Diageo

Official Event Partners – Arnold Clark Car & Van Rental, Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Edinburgh Tourism Action Group (ETAG), Stoats Porridge and VisitScotland,

Media Partners – Forth 1, The List

Official Transport Partner – Lothian Buses, NightBus and Edinburgh Bus Tours, Transport for Edinburgh

With Thanks to – Edinburgh Airport, Edinburgh Festivals, Marketing Edinburgh, National Museum of Scotland, National Galleries of Scotland and Historic Scotland.

Unique Events Limited:  Unique Events is Scotland’s leading independent event company specialising in creating festivals and producing large scale public events.  Unique Events have produced Edinburgh’s Hogmanay on behalf of the City of Edinburgh Council since its inception in 1993.  Details of the 2015/2016 Edinburgh’s Hogmanay celebrations will be announced in October.   Taking place from Wednesday 30 December 2015 till Friday 1 January 2016 the celebrations feature a Torchlight Procession winding through the streets of the city, the world-famous Street Party and Concert in the Gardens, the Midnight Fireworks display, singing and dancing all set against the magnificent backdrop of Edinburgh Castle.  For tickets and more information: www.edinburghshogmanay.com

Underbelly:  Underbelly is a UK based, live entertainment company. Their events and festivals division operates one of the largest operations at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe selling over 230,000 tickets for over 140 shows over 25 days. 2015 marks the seventh year of Udderbelly Festival at Southbank Centre and the fourth year of London Wonderground at Southbank Centre. Elsewhere Underbelly also produces Comedy Hullabaloo with the RSC Stratford- upon-Avon; Pride in London for the GLA and board of Pride; West End Live in Trafalgar Square for Westminster City Council and the Society of London Theatre. Through their Underbelly Productions arm they produce and promote live shows in London, throughout the UK and on tour internationally. In 2014 Underbelly sold over a million tickets to their various events. Underbelly’s unique performance venue, Udderbelly, will be making its international debut on Hong Kong’s iconic waterfront skyline from December to February 2016 with a bellyful of exciting, eclectic and affordable entertainment.

Edinburgh’s Christmas: Underbelly has produced Edinburgh’s Christmas since 2013 and won the Best Festival at the 2014 UK Event Awards. This year Edinburgh’s Christmas runs from Friday 20th November 2015 until Monday 4th January 2016 and the full programme of events was announced on Tuesday 22nd September. Edinburgh’s Christmas promises to deliver the biggest and brightest Christmas festival in Scotland. www.underbelly.co.uk.

Edinburgh’s Hogmanay & Edinburgh’s Christmas are produced by Unique Events Ltd & Underbelly on behalf of the City of Edinburgh Council.

 

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