The SPARKies awards are back to celebrate the tech innovators in Bristol, Bath and the West of England, and just over two weeks  – Thursday 14 October – we’ll get to find out who our well-deserving award winners are! Make sure you’ve got your ticket.

This year, we’re super excited to be welcoming first-rate northern talent to the host the awards. Star of TV and stage, comedian and writer Stephan Bailey will be your host for the evening.

Stephen Bailey is a cocktail of class, caring and comedy, with the most flamboyant umbrella to top it all off. His friendly and open brand of gossipy humour has made him one of the UK’s most exciting up-and-coming acts in comedy at the moment and an in demand talent for all things showbiz/entertainment.

“I am so excited to come and host the SPARKies. After the last year or so I am so thrilled that we can all get back into a room and enjoy some entertainment and give out some awards. I was also told that someone would be able to help me with my hard drive.” Stpehan Bailey 

As well as being a working-class, ginger, gay, northern comic, he is also a black belt in Tae Kwon-Do, has a degree in Languages, loves a conspiracy theory and anything relating to the Real Housewives or the Kardashians. We can’t wait to give him a warm welcome to the South West!

The SPARKies @ The Showroom

We’ve also finalised the venue for The SPARKies 2021. We’ll be bringing the best tech in the west to The Showroom, 803 – 805, Bath Road, Brislington, Bristol, BS4 5NL.

The space is a new studio, formerly a garage and car showroom. We’ll be transforming it for the night in true SPARKies style, before handing the studio back over to Netflix who’ll be filming their latest production there.

The Showroom will be kitted out with all the usual jazz – expect glitter, funky lights and street food, including Jafra Kitchen, a Palestinian inspired kitchen reimagining classic dishes.

Covid-19

Whilst we’re so excited to be partying in person again, we want to ensure the event is a safe and enjoyable evening for everyone. There are a few measures in place to ensure this can happen:

  • There will be a large outdoor area for people to socialise in
  • The space is running at reduced capacity to allow for social distancing inside
  • We’re encouraging everyone to take an LFT before attending the event – all of the TechSPARK team will be doing this!
  • We are offering a full refund for anyone who cannot attend due to Covid-19 self-isolating, or if you develop symptoms before the night