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LONDON HIPPODROME
London’s newest
star rises
The new addition to London’s casino scene is due to open in 2011.
The Hippodrome, just off Leicester Square in the centre of the city,
aims to bring a whole new offering to Londoners and tourists. Casino
International got the lowdown from Simon Thomas, Chairman of
Hippodrome Casino Ltd.
Simon Thomas in
front of the iconic
Hippodrome L
ondon is reasonably well served with casinos
in the heart of the city, so it must have taken
something quite impressive for the planned
Hippodrome development to get a casino
license from the Licensing Bench.
Something quite impressive indeed, as Casino
International discovered – not to mention ambitious,
forward thinking and very exciting.
Simon Thomas, Chairman, Hippodrome Casino Ltd
talks us through the project…
Casino International: How on did you get the
licence and why now? There are 26 casinos in
London, the Hippodrome will be 27. There hasn’t
been a new licence granted for three years…
ST: Simply because we were bringing something
new and special to the London Casino scene!
Licensing history in London was the last ones were
the Empire in 2005, Ladbrokes Paddington in 2004
and the Hard Rock in 2000, We started work on the machine numbers going up to twenty; electronic
Hippodrome in 2004, got our planning in 2006, product development continuing apace, with the
went for the licence application in 2007, which was electronic roulette already at high standards and
turned down and we got our licence on appeal in obviously punto banco and electronic blackjack to
2008. The reason we were interested in the first place follow and possibly even electronic five card poker.
was, having been President of BACTA and on the Add to this the deregulation to be able to advertise,
main committee of the Bingo Association, I was fairly to have live entertainment, to have alcohol on the
involved in the whole of the 2005 Gambling Act, gaming floor etc, all of which, to me, looked as
process and, quite frankly, I didn’t like the way it was though casinos were going to get the boost that the
looking for bingo and arcades, but did like the way it bingo industry had in the 1990s when it had similar
was looking for Casinos. deregulation, with opportunities particularly for
I thought there was going to be quite a seismic people with bigger, well located sites, who could take
shift in fortunes between the various sectors, and on advantage of the new regulations.
top of that, I thought the smoking ban was going to The Hippodrome opportunity came up, a
completely rebase the industry. At the same time substantial building in one of the busiest
venture capitalists were still baying for leisure stocks entertainment districts in Europe, let alone England:
and offered us more than we thought the business a consortium of six of us agreed to take the lease and
was worth, so we sold our bingo business, completing seek to get planning and permits. After an extensive
in August 2006. Consistent with this I wanted to process we were granted planning first time round.
switch to Casinos as at the same time I saw the casino Westminster is obviously amenable to large casinos,
industry getting substantial deregulation with the having applied for two large casinos under the CAP
48-hour rule going to 24 hours, then zero; proposals, and also Westminster is very keen to clean
Membership ceasing to be a requirement; Gaming up Leicester Square, trying to get rid of nightclubs in
38 OCTOBER 2009
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