The new £13 million Unicorn Theatre came to life in December 2005 to a clamour of media attention and celebration.

Unicorn, in Southwark, London, is the UK’s first purpose built professional theatre for children. News of its opening reached millions of people across the country and was the culmination of an 18 month public relations campaign led by Kallaway.

Unicorn came to Kallaway to strategically position the new theatre, assist fundraising, increase understanding of theatre for children and profile Unicorn’s design and architecture.

Our campaign forged links across the media and into key audiences as building progressed. We launched Unicorn’s public appeal, its consultation report, communicated progress of the construction and helped strengthen its relationship with potential and existing funders.

We also worked with Barclays and Unicorn to develop Barclays First Class, a community sponsorship that enabled over 1,500 children to visit Unicorn and see its opening show before anyone else. The initiative, and the press it generated across London, helped strengthen Barclays’ valued connections to the community.

Our dedicated online media centre at www.kallaway.co.uk/unicorn.htm supported all activity, providing news, high resolution images, briefing documents and partner information to journalists all over the UK and abroad.

Unicorn Opens
Kallaway’s public relations campaign ensured Unicorn’s opening was comprehensively covered across the national media.

BBC ONE and BBC Radio 4 national news carried the opening. Other broadcast coverage included BBC London TV and radio, London Tonight, the Robert Elms Show, Front Row, News 24, BSN, The Culture Show, LBC and Radio Wales.

Features were secured in every broadsheet. The Financial Times, Independent, Sunday Times Culture,Telegraph and Evening Standard gave full pages to Unicorn. Other highlights included Architects’ Journal, The Stage, Building, Bloomberg.com, Building Design, Blueprint, Construction News, Newstatesman.com Regeneration & Renewal and AI, to name a few….

“Totally new theatres in Britain are rare and good ones rarer still…The new Unicorn is a modernist tower house, an enchanted castle,”
Hugh Pearman, The Sunday Times

“The Unicorn is considered, well adjusted architecture that allows the actions it serves, theatre for children, to flourish,”
Rowan Moore, Evening Standard

“A brave new world of theatre really does await this lucky generation of children.”
Sarah Compton, Telegraph

“Theatre for children has matured and intelligent, theatrically daring shows are in demand,”
Sarah Hemming, Financial Times

“It's really important that children have the opportunity to see theatre, especially as it directly links to literacy standards. Barclays First Class has enabled children who would never normally be able to go to the theatre and have an amazing experience."
Mrs Russell, Teacher, Mayville School