Everyone likes to win a prize. It is a peculiarity in every industry. In the news, the Royal Institute of British Architects is handing out awards, as is the Royal Television Society. In fact, the ATA gala are enthusiastic about the training of apprentices this month.
It’s perhaps part of the human condition, which is why companies use the same tools to reward their customers.
Just as Starbucks gives out points to buy coffee every morning, gaming operators have treats for their players. Prize Pinball at Betfair offers a chance for cash prizes and casino bonuses with every ball launched. Eligibility requirements are also a bit simpler than TV and film awards (no voting).
Voting
On the latter point, the awards season for both usually runs from November to February of the following year, although the volume of awards appearing on the calendar means that voting (at least) tends to occupy the entire year.
The Oscars are in March, the Tonys in June and the Emmy Awards in September. The Brit Awards, one of the UK’s oldest, start at the end of February each year.
The British went a little differently this time. For the first time, the ceremony took place at Co-op Live in Manchester. Now the arena’s managing director, Guy Dunstan, plans to keep it.
Earl’s Court
The Brit Awards were first held 49 years ago and started at Wembley Conference Center as a semi-regular event. It remained at the site until the 1990s, when it moved to Earls Court Exhibition Centre. The “legendary” Earls Court, to quote the WestEndTheatre website, was demolished in the late 2010s. The area is now awaiting a £10bn redevelopment.
For more than a decade after the Brit Awards left Earls Court, London’s O2 took up the hosting baton. In fact, the 2020 edition coincided with the Brits’ first decade at the venue. What happened next may seem a bit of a surprise.
Organizers apparently felt the annual event had become stale and opted to leave London for the first time in a bid to “revive” the nearly five-decade-old show. This move almost brings us to today. As mentioned, the 2026 Brit Awards was the first show on Co-op Live.
questions
Despite the success of this year’s ceremony, which featured stars such as Robbie Williams and came after other major arena acts (eg Bruce Springsteen), Co-op Live has a surprisingly short contract for the Brit Awards. It will last another year.
Co-op Live is, of course, still unproven after only being open for two years. Problems hit the first few months on the event circuit. On one occasion, a part of the air conditioning system fell from the rafters just a few days before the first artists were to perform.
Arena boss Guy Dunstan says the arena would now “love to stage” the Brits for years to come. The good news is that with such a packed awards calendar, some stability could be just the ticket.
