I'm Olly Offord, and I'm all over London like a rash this Olympics  

Experiencing the London 2012 Olympic Park


Initially buying tickets that only let you in to the Olympic Park without letting you see any actual live sport does seem a bit stupid. Admittedly, when I first confirmed payment I regretted that I might have paid £10 per person to get ripped off by McDonalds. It’s not even like Wimbledon where you can catch some of the lesser matches around the outside. The closest you can get to seeing the action is the big screen in the north of the park.
But, you get to experience something else; the crowds of people piling in to see the Olympics. The place is rammed with people who are there to see a wide range or things but are all keen for London 2012. The surrounding buzz is palpable as flags, face paint and weird outfits become bizarrely more attractive than they would in the outside world. Cheers can be heard from the basketball and hockey while you enjoy an overpriced chocolate bar. The energy about the place is infectious. And if you are British, there is nowhere you can feel more amongst like minds than in front of the big screen. Every time a Brit comes on, you wave and scream like they can hear you. Actually, they’re only a few hundred metres away - maybe they can.

Hyde Park Big Screens: This is more like it! After a very unsuccessful trip to Victoria Park, I was nervous heading towards the much bigger experience of Hyde Park - a larger site has the potential to be even more empty. I need not have feared. The place was rammed, it took half an hour just queueing to get it! And the atmosphere was buzzing. With four big screens, and it being a weekend of stonking British success, people a wave of people moved between each of them to catch Murray on Centre Court or Clancy in the veladrome. The most exciting moments were reserved for fresh GB Gold Medals. Sat near the back, my view of the screen was obstructed by thousands of hands, flags and bodies flying into the air and the commentary drowned out by cheering, clapping and some very enthusiastic screams. Now that GB are on the ascendance, the general public seem to be shifting into gear when it comes to supporting the home team and enjoying the Olympic circus (damn glory hunters, I’ve been here the whole bloody time).

Hyde Park Big Screens: This is more like it!

After a very unsuccessful trip to Victoria Park, I was nervous heading towards the much bigger experience of Hyde Park - a larger site has the potential to be even more empty.

I need not have feared. The place was rammed, it took half an hour just queueing to get it! And the atmosphere was buzzing. With four big screens, and it being a weekend of stonking British success, people a wave of people moved between each of them to catch Murray on Centre Court or Clancy in the veladrome.

The most exciting moments were reserved for fresh GB Gold Medals. Sat near the back, my view of the screen was obstructed by thousands of hands, flags and bodies flying into the air and the commentary drowned out by cheering, clapping and some very enthusiastic screams.

Now that GB are on the ascendance, the general public seem to be shifting into gear when it comes to supporting the home team and enjoying the Olympic circus

(damn glory hunters, I’ve been here the whole bloody time).

Live Site Lacks Life:

If you are looking for evidence that London really is empty everywhere but Stratford, then look no further than one of the most local parks to the Olympic Games. Victoria Park has been taken over by a festival set up with 3 big screens showing all the Olympic action alongside live music acts and tonnes of activities. Big Screens + loads of extras = Big Party, right?

Nah-uh. The place was depressingly dead this particular Thursday night. No one was in the zorbs, the ferris wheel was spinning round empty, and the cheerleaders were missing an audience. There were a handful of people around the big screens, but the live acts would have had larger audiences performing in their church hall.

And then, as if they intentionally wanted to suck out any atmosphere still surviving, the giant screen broke as soon as the Men’s Team Sprint final began. Booing is not something that you associate with having a good time. :-/