London Eye ice skating in 2014 meant blue lights, a rink beneath the wheel and an evening on the South Bank. This Roberts London film visits EyeSkate after dark, with County Hall beside the ice and the London Eye rising above the skaters.
This is an archive of the 2014 visit. The seasonal dates and visitor information in the original film describe that winter’s event.
Arriving at EyeSkate after dark
I begin beside the rink, explaining that I have come to the London Eye to see that year’s ice skating. Strings of blue lights stretch overhead, while the illuminated rink gives the scene its wintry colour. The wheel soon becomes the unmistakable landmark above it all.
The film was first published on 17 November 2014. It captures a short evening visit on the South Bank, with most of its running time given to the skaters, the lights and the view from the ice.
The rinkside tents
White pointed tents line one side of the rink. People gather behind the barriers beneath the lights, and the camera moves between the rink edge and the open ice. A Frostival sign places the skating session within the London Eye’s seasonal event.
An announcement near the beginning asks skaters to check the fit of their skates before going onto the ice and to ask the skate team for assistance if needed. It is one of the few spoken passages before the music and skating footage take over.
Finding a way across the ice
A young skater holds a red skating aid, while other visitors make their way past the tents. The pace varies: some people move across the rink with confidence, while others stay closer to the edge or use a support.
Those small details give the film its character. Rather than presenting a polished performance, it records the shared experience of an evening session, with people finding their balance and making their way around together.
The London Eye above the rink
The camera tilts upwards to show the London Eye outlined in blue against a cloudy night sky. Its rim and supports rise directly above the skating area, giving the setting a scale that is difficult to appreciate from close views of the ice alone.
At rink level, strings of lights cross the frame. Looking up brings the larger landmark back into view, linking the skating session to one of the South Bank’s most recognisable sights.
County Hall in the evening
County Hall forms another backdrop to the rink. Its warmly illuminated windows contrast with the cool blue light across the ice. Skaters pass in front of the building, and people pause along the barrier.
The changing camera angles keep both sides of the setting in view: the building beside the rink and the wheel overhead. Together they make this a very particular London evening, rather than a skating session that could have been filmed anywhere.
Blue light across the ice
Later shots look across the barrier towards the skaters. Blue and violet reflections colour the panels around the rink, with strings of bulbs drawing lines above the ice. The movement continues while the camera briefly watches from the side.
Most of this middle section is a visual sequence accompanied by music. The atmosphere comes through the lighting, the passing skaters and the repeated glimpses of the wheel, rather than a long spoken review.
A winter scene from 2014
The original video description advertised EyeSkate as part of Frostival, with a season running from 15 November 2014 to 4 January 2015. Those dates belong to the event shown in this archive film; they are not current opening information.
For another view of the South Bank that November, the nearby Real Food Market visit records bruschetta, coffee and market stalls beneath the winter lights. The two films preserve different parts of the area’s evening life.
A final photograph before signing off
Towards the end, I stop for a quick photograph for Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, then thank viewers and sign off. The London Eye remains behind me, completing the short visit with the same landmark that dominates the skating footage.
The full film below brings those moments together: the introduction, the rinkside announcement, the skating sequence and the closing message. It is a brief record of EyeSkate at night in November 2014.
