Olivier Awards will Celebrate 40th Anniversary with YouTube Broadcasts & More

The Olivier Awards with MasterCard, the UK's most prestigious stage honours, has announced exciting plans, including new partnerships, to celebrate the awards' 40th anniversary.

Nicola Grant, Head of Marketing for MasterCard UK & Ireland said: "MasterCard is hugely proud to continue its partnership with SOLT and to celebrate the 40th year of the Oliviers - Britain's most renowned theatre awards. Together we share the passion for recognising the brightest talents in British theatre and for bringing our cardholders closer to the art they adore."

In the UK, ITV will be the official television broadcast partner. Extensive highlights of the Olivier Awards 2016 with MasterCard will be broadcast on ITV on the evening of Sunday 3 April with the show available to view on the ITV Hub. Further details of coverage on ITV will be announced in the coming weeks.

The award's UK radio partner will be Magic Radio, with the Oliviers playing a major part in the launch of Mellow Magic, the brand's new station due to be unveiled next month. The ceremony will be broadcast live on Mellow Magic on the night, with clips running across the main station Magic Radio. In addition, in the weeks leading up to the ceremony there will be a specially commissioned series looking back at the last 40 years featuring the winning music and stars from the awards. Voting for the Magic Radio Audience Award, the only Olivier Award voted entirely by the public, opens on Tuesday 23 February.

For the 40th anniversary, the Olivier Awards is also delighted to announce a new series of video broadcasts on the new Olivier Awards YouTube channel at youtube.com. The full event on the public stage in Covent Garden, featuring live performances from the Magic Radio Audience Award shortlisted shows and others, will be livestreamed to the YouTube channel on the afternoon of Sunday 3 April

Later in the evening, international audiences throughout the world will be able to watch the full broadcast of the star-studded ceremony on the YouTube channel.

In addition, the Olivier Awards with MasterCard has also announced a series of new partnerships:

· Fortnum & Mason

The partnership with the iconic brand includes a programme of events which will celebrate award-winning theatre, culminating in a special charity day at the Piccadilly Store on 5 May.

· Land Securities

Land Securities will be promoting the Olivier Awards on their famous Piccadilly Lights.

· Capco
On the night, the Covent Garden Piazza will once again host the ITV Stage for the public and the entire ceremony will be shown on its large screen.

· Big Image Systems UK

The Olivier Awards will be working with the large format print specialists Big Image for the first time. They will be contributing to the ceremony on Sunday 3 April.

Julian Bird, Chief Executive of SOLT and Executive Producer of the Olivier Awards with MasterCard, said: "As we celebrate their 40th anniversary, this year's awards are set to be the biggest yet. We are delighted that MasterCard continues its generous support while our new international broadcast channel provides an exciting opportunity to reach audiences around the world, reflecting the premier status of London theatre."

Nominations for the Olivier Awards 2016 will be announced on Monday 29 February at Rosewood London and the ceremony will take place at the Royal Opera House on Sunday 3 April. The awards are produced by the Society of London Theatre.

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