Camden New Journal - by DAN CARRIER Published: 5 July 2007
Heath ice rink axed
THE Christmas ice rink will not be coming to Parliament Hill this year following disappointing attendances. Last Christmas, ticket sales plummeted by 10,000 and events company PWR, which runs the rink for the City of London, guardians of Hampstead Heath, says it is no longer commercially viable.
PWR company director Jamie Wells said: “With no monies put in by the local council, public funding or the City of London, the Hampstead Heath ice rink needs to be run on a commercial basis. “Unfortunately, ticket sales for the last season were such that the rink could not be run on this basis for another year.”
Heath superintendent Simon Lee said: “There are now so many ice rinks across London, and, with a mild winter, it was just not financially viable. It is disappointing, but at the moment it seems there will be no skating.”
The rink was introduced two years ago at Parliament Hill tennis courts. In a secret deal between the City of London and PWR, the City took a percentage of ticket sales.