Have you seen it yet? If you find yourself in the West End in the next week, you’ll certainly do well to miss it: the front page of this iconic newspaper, but as you’ve never seen it before, animated for the first time on the immense screens in London’s Outernet district, which includes 23,000 square feet of wrap-around, floor-to-ceiling 16k-enabled screens, right outside Tottenham Court Road Tube station.
For those unfamiliar with the capital’s buzzy new billion-pound entertainment district Outernet London, these aren’t just billboard versions of the Evening Standard’s unmissable daily cover. They are the most advanced immersive screens in the world, standing proud in the heart of central London and set to broadcast an exclusive animated version of this paper’s cover as hundreds of thousands of copies are distributed around the capital each day.
Think of it as London’s answer to New York’s Times Square, boasting three times as much screen area as Piccadilly Circus, and right in the spot where Soho meets the shiny new Elizabeth Line bringing visitors pouring into central London. With a footfall of 123,000 a week, it’s hard to think of hotter London real-estate for sharing a publication that is so woven into the fabric of this city and is as powerful digitally today as it is in print. Cover stars set to be beamed out over the streets of WC1A in the coming months include everyone from Mick Jagger to Stormzy.
This immense new animated front page concept launches next week as part of an exciting new partnership between this paper and Outernet London, the high-tech new entertainment district whose centrepiece The Now Building is on track to become the number one visitor attraction in the UK.
The maximalist live broadcast space — free to visit and home to the world’s largest LED canvas by pixel density — was a decade in the making when it opened in November following a £1bn redevelopment and has already hosted brands including Burberry, Amazon, Netflix, Nike, Chanel and Porsche and exhibitions from the likes of the Royal College of Art.
According to recent figures released by Outernet, average weekly visitor numbers to The Now Building currently stand at 123,000, giving the development a predicted yearly reach of 6.3 million. This puts it on track to be ahead of the current top three attractions in the country — Windsor Great Park, the Natural History Museum and the British Museum — when compared to their numbers by the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions. Future Outernet districts are set to be built in the US, Asia and Europe over the coming years, with similar venues planned for Los Angeles and New York.
Here in London, the site’s unique setting is undoubtedly at the forefront of The Outernet’s appeal. Tottenham Court Road recently overtook both Waterloo and Liverpool Street to enter the top five most-used stations on the TfL network thanks to opening of the Elizabeth Line, and the new Outernet development — just outside the Charing Cross Road entrance to TCR station — includes the iconic Denmark Street, home to the musicians’ hang-out Tin Pan Alley where everyone from Elton John and David Bowie to The Rolling Stones and Sex Pistols started out in their careers.
Philip Bourchier O’Ferrall, chief executive of Outernet Global, says he hopes Londoners will feel “happy, exhilarated, informed and part of something special” when they see the new Evening Standard broadcast on Outernet’s high-spec, 360-degree landing screens from next week.
To him, the partnership signals a powerful moment in the history of our capital city: a landmark partnership between two iconic London institutions and a new chapter in how Londoners engage with the most vital, vibrant and interesting stories their city generates every day. “The Standard has always defined London news and culture and to partner with them is a powerful moment,” he says.
The Standard has always defined London news and culture; to partner with them is a powerful moment
“We’re both committed to art, culture, fashion, music and all the things that make London the best capital city in the world. Being able to work together to shout about all those things on such iconic platforms is an exhilarating thought. We have common goals and a shared love of this city and all that it and the people that live here are capable of.
“The Evening Standard has its rich history and huge influence and we have the screen technology, immense spaces and now a footfall that means we are on track to be the number one visitor attraction in the UK. All this means we can do things together that have never been possible before.”
Among the most exciting things the partnership has already made possible is the launch of the UK’s newest and boldest ad competition, a contest called the London Creative Advertising Competition with a prize value of £1m in media space and time. Further details will be announced in the paper later this year.
Dylan Jones, Editor-in-Chief of the Evening Standard, says he is excited about the partnership and sees it as a reflection of how his historic media brand is seeking to innovate over the coming years as Londoners pour back into the city centre.
“I’m thrilled that the Evening Standard is now working with the Outernet,” he says. “It’s one of the most exciting innovations in London, as we continue to innovate ourselves, I couldn’t think of a more powerful relationship. I’m also thrilled that the Outernet have seen the potential of our new superpowered paper.”
Part of this superpowered new paper is an uptick in its interactive elements: QR codes to podcast episodes; links to more detailed analysis online. QR codes will appear on the Outernet’s big screens, too, taking visitors straight to the Evening Standard on their phones if they fancy scrolling through the online edition as well the free print version handed out at Tube stations.
Unmissable in more ways than one, then. Here’s to the most exciting media era yet.
