Jump to content

London 2012 Olympic Cauldron...


Recommended Posts

I'm about to ask a very stupid question.

Are we certain the cauldron will be at the Olympic Stadium? Or even at the Olympic Park?

Here's why I ask: back during the Queen's Jubilee, during the events in front of Buckingham Palace, I could not help but marvel at the size and shape of the reviewing stand at Traflagar Square and it occured to me it looked for all the world like a cauldron. Now, obviously, it wasn't, but it's just something to noodle over. Could the final site of the cauldron end up being some place like extremely public and iconic like in Trafalgar Square? More that one person has suggested the cauldron moving or more than one location involved in the lighting.

At this point, I'm slinging whatever mud I can against the wall because I have absolutely no clue what they even have in mind anymore.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 3.1k
  • Created
  • Last Reply

I think I may have seen the site - there is something strange - not sure if it's been completely built or whether it's half finished - for obvious reasons - I can't say anything else!

Exiting ! I will arrive this friday in London.... almost ready to head to John Lewis at Westfield in Stratford to try to see it from the last floor of the building....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think I may have seen the site - there is something strange - not sure if it's been completely built or whether it's half finished - for obvious reasons - I can't say anything else!

Note to self: keep eyes peeled on the way to/from this weekends' rehearsals!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

@mattperiolat - I think that's one of the essential questions. Yes, there will be a cauldron at the Olympic Stadium. The Olympic Charter says something like the flame must be lit in front of the audience in the stadium, and visible outside, if possible. So do you suppose London will do a Vancouver with a ceremonial cauldron in the stadium and a permanent cauldron elsewhere? I had proposed the idea of a mobile cauldron a while back. This is possible. Vancouver's outdoor cauldron was very popular with the public, with thousands lining up to snap photos of themselves in front of it. They messed up with the hideous fence, but whether by design or by accident, they ended up with huge engagement. London organizers would have seen that and have commented on it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think I may have seen the site - there is something strange - not sure if it's been completely built or whether it's half finished - for obvious reasons - I can't say anything else!

Inside or outside the stadium? Is it recognisable also for us on the already-published photographs or is it hidden?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

In a short interview Clare Amsel, producer of the Paralympic Opening Ceremony was asked:

Do you have a favorite lighting of the olympic cauldron moment?

- "It hasn't happend yet! I already know the London Cauldron will be the most beautiful ever so this will be my favorite."

I think it will a big suprise as it was in Barceona 92.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Leaking Barcelona's probably also served a purpose...to build suspense: Could they do it? Yes!

Anyway, to keep it on topic...the location. Looking at the poll I created last week, it is pretty clear that we're all befuddled by this, although the plurality (27% as of this posting) think it will be outside the stadium, followed by the 20% who think it will be something all together unexpected.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I still wouldn't throw away the possibility of having a "ceremony-only" cauldron and then having an identical one outside the stadium somewhere.

Also, if the cauldron is indeed being built somewhere else right now, it's probably not a cauldron tower. I mean, why build a tower off-site, take it part, and then build it again on-site? There's no sense in that. I suppose they can keep it assembled and transport it by helicopter or something, but having your giant cauldron tower flying across the sky is the last thing you want to do if you want to keep it a secret.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The ceremony ticket graphics in sequence may provides clues to the cauldron design and assembly.

Olympic Opening Ceremony: Many parts/arms fold together to form some sort of bowl or base for the flame

Olympic Closing Ceremony: The formed cauldron (side view) remains stationary through the closing ceremony.

Paralympic Opening Ceremony: The formed cauldron (top view) is in place for the Paralympic opening.

Paralympic Closing Ceremony: The cauldrons many parts/arms fold away as the flame is extinguished.

Just for fun here... what if each one of those poles is also used to usher in a nation? It's difficult to tell with the mosaic, but could there possibly be enough "tiles" in the "bowl" to have one for each county?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Also, if the cauldron is indeed being built somewhere else right now, it's probably not a cauldron tower. I mean, why build a tower off-site, take it part, and then build it again on-site? There's no sense in that.

I don't know about that. It's certainly not the most efficient way to do it, but if they are making secrecy a priority maybe it's worth it to them...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I wonder if the true secret of what is going on is not just where the cauldron will end up being lit. Let us suppose for a moment that Kenadian is right and there is more than one cauldron, one inside, one outside, perhaps more. What Vancouver did with Gretzky going to the final cauldron was very clumsy, truth be told. Could the designers have come up with a way to have the flame to travel from cauldron to cauldron throughout the city lighting them off in sequence? If they pull it off, we will have something to rival Lord of the Rings in terms of epicness.

I'm really starting to feel like I'm grasping here, but I cannot escape the feeling that if there will be an external cauldron and there is more than one cauldron, the organizers will want to involve the Thames River somehow too.

Getting interesting.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I still wouldn't throw away the possibility of having a "ceremony-only" cauldron and then having an identical one outside the stadium somewhere.

Also, if the cauldron is indeed being built somewhere else right now, it's probably not a cauldron tower. I mean, why build a tower off-site, take it part, and then build it again on-site? There's no sense in that. I suppose they can keep it assembled and transport it by helicopter or something, but having your giant cauldron tower flying across the sky is the last thing you want to do if you want to keep it a secret.

For Salt Lake the entire cauldron tower was assembled offsite and then driven by a big rig to Ryce-Ecceles Stadium. They had it wrapped up so you couldn't tell what it was, but obviously word got out as the truck had to drive incredibly slow (as to not crack the glass) and media soon began following it down the highway.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The thing with putting the/a cauldon on the roof of the stadium (and I think the roof can withstand the weight of a light cauldron), is that there are so many of those triangular lighting thingies PLUS other things sticking out that it's going to look like some tenement neighborhood with all that crap on the roof, that it's going to be really, really ugly. In some of those profile shots, the arc over the FUGLY Orbital would seem to be the logical place to house a flame.

Maybe Heatherwick is only designing the flame?? :blink:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I thought that too...that would be pretty cool, having it atop Tower Bridge. I was there just two weeks ago, has such an aura.

They;re killing us by inches in. IF it's at Tower Bridge and IF Redgrave is the last bearer, that almost certainly would seem to be a clue, especially given how the ceremony has evolved and the location of the stadium that the Thames may be used.

I know, I know, I'm probably getting carried away just because I want it so badly. I think it's also such a strong memory of the Sydney Closing Ceremonies of the river of fire from Homebush all the way down to the Harbor Bridge to conclude the games. Why not try and do something similar to open the Games in London?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


×
×
  • Create New...