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UK PINFEST 2022
Pinball News
The end-of-August public holiday can only mean one thing; It’s time for UK Pinfest.
We are back at the Mercure Daventry Hotel for the fourth UK Pinfest show. All four have been held here, starting in 2018 with a one year hiatus due to Covid in 2020.
The Mercure Daventry Hotel’s main entrance
We arrived at midday on the Friday. The main show hall was still being built-up with around half the total number of pinballs expected having arrived.
Setting up machines in the main hall
More machines to be set up
The front row of machines including the games from the Pinball Amigos
The main tournament area
Some games arrived by the van load, others by car
Inside the main hall on Friday afternoon
Along with the games in the main hall, as selection of modern titles are set up in the hotel’s lobby on pay-to-play. Each game costs £1, or you can get 3 games for £2. All money raised would be donated to charity.
The games in the lobby were very popular before the main hall opened on Friday
Rush Premium, Godzilla Premium, Stranger Things Limited Edition and Guns ‘N Roses Limited Edition
Meanwhile, the Classics Competition was being set up in a side room called the Priestly Room.
A big prize for the winner of the Classics Competition
This way for the Classics Competition
Sean Harvey sets up the Classics room ready for Saturday’s qualifying rounds
The Classics machines
Trophies for the Classics Competition
Meanwhile, back in the main hall, more games were arriving and being set up.
More machines now in the main show hall
A nice row of Solid-state Gottlieb machines
‘Behind-the-scenes’ with the power and PA equipment
Machines for the Main Tournament
Trophies for the Main Tournament
The show doesn’t open to the public until 7pm tonight, and that is only for VIP pass holders. For everyone else, doors open at 10:30am tomorrow.
Outside the main hall there were two stands – one for show tickets and another from London Pinball selling assorted pinball parts and paraphernalia.
The corridor outside the main hall
The UK Pinfest show desk
On-the-day ticket prices for UK Pinfest 2022 ranged from £10 for the Saturday evening session to £20 for Saturday or Sunday, £35 for both days and £50 for the whole weekend with the Friday and Saturday VIP sessions included. Pre-show ticket purchases had also been available at a reduced rate.
The rooms at the hotel were also available at a special show rate of £65 for a single room and £75 for a two-person room. Both rates included a buffet breakfast in the hotel’s restaurant.
The London Pinball stall
Back in the hotel’s lobby, attendees’ time was split between the pay-to-play machines, the bar and the food service counter.
The Lobby bar area
Many people were leaving nothing to chance and had brought their own beer
The food counter in the lobby
As Friday’s opening time drew closer, the main hall started to look more complete.
The main hall on Friday evening
Here’s the schedule of events across the weekend:
Friday, Saturday and Sunday at UK Pinfest 2022
The VIP session began at 7pm and soon the hall was busy with players wearing VIP-access wristbands checking out the range of machines available to play.
The main hall on Friday evening
The main hall on Friday evening
Ad Jonker brought his one-of-a-kind Aladdin’s Tales of the Arabian Nights from the Netherlands
Created by Wil Angenent, it uses a new playfield design running the original software
One-handed pinball on Elvira’s House of Horrors
The first two competitive events were held on Friday evening. Stall Ball was run by Neil McRae on a The Shadow machine with a first prize of a new Nokia Android phone.
Neil starts the Stall Ball competition
In Stall Ball, the aim is to put the ball into a saucer, scoop or lock. Do that and you can walk away, let the next player in line take over and join the back of the queue to carry on playing. If you should drain the ball though, you are out.
There was a long line of players but it moved very quickly, so even if you were at the very back you probably only had a five minute wait to play. As players were knocked out, the queue shortened and the time between turns reduced.
The queue ran around three sides of the hall, but it moved quickly
Meanwhile, in one of the side rooms, the Ladies Tournament – organised by the Scottish Pinball Association – was taking place on a linked pair of NBA Fastbreak machines.
The Ladies Tournament on Friday night
Play in the Ladies Tournament
The tournament ran late, so at midnight the final round was deferred until 10am on Saturday morning.
At midnight, the lights were switched on, the games switched off, and the show hall closed until Saturday morning.
Game over for Friday at UK Pinfest
After breakfast, the final of the Ladies Tournament has held on the two NBA Fastbreak machines. Sarah Vince and Pauline Bird were in the final.
Sarah and Pauline in the final of the Ladies Tournament
In the final, Sarah triumphed with a score of 33 points to Pauline’s 22. Moira and Hayley were joint third, having lost in the semi-finals.
Sarah Vince receives her trophy from Ailsa Clunie of the Scottish Pinball Association
With the Ladies Tournament decided, it wasn’t long before the NBA Fastbreak machines were back in action with the NBA Challenge tournament, also organised by the Scottish Pinball Association.
The first rounds of the NBA Challenge begin
Across the corridor, the Classics Tournament was getting under way too. Entry to this cost £15 which comprised of a £10 registration and 5 x £1 games on any of the machines. Additional games could then be purchased at the same £1 price.
Sean registers another player
Play in the Classics Tournament
Meanwhile, the main hall was preparing to admit Saturday’s guests at the appointed 10:30am opening time.
The corridor outside the main hall as the doors were about to open
The first guests through the door on Saturday
The hall quickly filled with guests and the sounds of pinball being played
The machines were soon nearly all in use
At the back of the hall, the main tournament started with players registering and playing their qualifying games.
Paul registers another player in the main tournament
Craig is one of the first to play
We will be updating this report with all the action from Daventry right across the weekend, so come back for all the latest news, pictures and videos from UK Pinfest 2022.
Continue reading...
Pinball News
The end-of-August public holiday can only mean one thing; It’s time for UK Pinfest.
We are back at the Mercure Daventry Hotel for the fourth UK Pinfest show. All four have been held here, starting in 2018 with a one year hiatus due to Covid in 2020.
The Mercure Daventry Hotel’s main entrance
FRIDAY
We arrived at midday on the Friday. The main show hall was still being built-up with around half the total number of pinballs expected having arrived.
Setting up machines in the main hall
More machines to be set up
The front row of machines including the games from the Pinball Amigos
The main tournament area
Some games arrived by the van load, others by car
Inside the main hall on Friday afternoon
Along with the games in the main hall, as selection of modern titles are set up in the hotel’s lobby on pay-to-play. Each game costs £1, or you can get 3 games for £2. All money raised would be donated to charity.
The games in the lobby were very popular before the main hall opened on Friday
Rush Premium, Godzilla Premium, Stranger Things Limited Edition and Guns ‘N Roses Limited Edition
Meanwhile, the Classics Competition was being set up in a side room called the Priestly Room.
A big prize for the winner of the Classics Competition
This way for the Classics Competition
Sean Harvey sets up the Classics room ready for Saturday’s qualifying rounds
The Classics machines
Trophies for the Classics Competition
Meanwhile, back in the main hall, more games were arriving and being set up.
More machines now in the main show hall
A nice row of Solid-state Gottlieb machines
‘Behind-the-scenes’ with the power and PA equipment
Machines for the Main Tournament
Trophies for the Main Tournament
The show doesn’t open to the public until 7pm tonight, and that is only for VIP pass holders. For everyone else, doors open at 10:30am tomorrow.
Outside the main hall there were two stands – one for show tickets and another from London Pinball selling assorted pinball parts and paraphernalia.
The corridor outside the main hall
The UK Pinfest show desk
On-the-day ticket prices for UK Pinfest 2022 ranged from £10 for the Saturday evening session to £20 for Saturday or Sunday, £35 for both days and £50 for the whole weekend with the Friday and Saturday VIP sessions included. Pre-show ticket purchases had also been available at a reduced rate.
The rooms at the hotel were also available at a special show rate of £65 for a single room and £75 for a two-person room. Both rates included a buffet breakfast in the hotel’s restaurant.
The London Pinball stall
Back in the hotel’s lobby, attendees’ time was split between the pay-to-play machines, the bar and the food service counter.
The Lobby bar area
Many people were leaving nothing to chance and had brought their own beer
The food counter in the lobby
As Friday’s opening time drew closer, the main hall started to look more complete.
The main hall on Friday evening
Here’s the schedule of events across the weekend:
Friday, Saturday and Sunday at UK Pinfest 2022
The VIP session began at 7pm and soon the hall was busy with players wearing VIP-access wristbands checking out the range of machines available to play.
The main hall on Friday evening
The main hall on Friday evening
Ad Jonker brought his one-of-a-kind Aladdin’s Tales of the Arabian Nights from the Netherlands
Created by Wil Angenent, it uses a new playfield design running the original software
One-handed pinball on Elvira’s House of Horrors
The first two competitive events were held on Friday evening. Stall Ball was run by Neil McRae on a The Shadow machine with a first prize of a new Nokia Android phone.
Neil starts the Stall Ball competition
In Stall Ball, the aim is to put the ball into a saucer, scoop or lock. Do that and you can walk away, let the next player in line take over and join the back of the queue to carry on playing. If you should drain the ball though, you are out.
There was a long line of players but it moved very quickly, so even if you were at the very back you probably only had a five minute wait to play. As players were knocked out, the queue shortened and the time between turns reduced.
The queue ran around three sides of the hall, but it moved quickly
Meanwhile, in one of the side rooms, the Ladies Tournament – organised by the Scottish Pinball Association – was taking place on a linked pair of NBA Fastbreak machines.
The Ladies Tournament on Friday night
Play in the Ladies Tournament
The tournament ran late, so at midnight the final round was deferred until 10am on Saturday morning.
At midnight, the lights were switched on, the games switched off, and the show hall closed until Saturday morning.
Game over for Friday at UK Pinfest
SATURDAY
After breakfast, the final of the Ladies Tournament has held on the two NBA Fastbreak machines. Sarah Vince and Pauline Bird were in the final.
Sarah and Pauline in the final of the Ladies Tournament
In the final, Sarah triumphed with a score of 33 points to Pauline’s 22. Moira and Hayley were joint third, having lost in the semi-finals.
Sarah Vince receives her trophy from Ailsa Clunie of the Scottish Pinball Association
With the Ladies Tournament decided, it wasn’t long before the NBA Fastbreak machines were back in action with the NBA Challenge tournament, also organised by the Scottish Pinball Association.
The first rounds of the NBA Challenge begin
Across the corridor, the Classics Tournament was getting under way too. Entry to this cost £15 which comprised of a £10 registration and 5 x £1 games on any of the machines. Additional games could then be purchased at the same £1 price.
Sean registers another player
Play in the Classics Tournament
Meanwhile, the main hall was preparing to admit Saturday’s guests at the appointed 10:30am opening time.
The corridor outside the main hall as the doors were about to open
The first guests through the door on Saturday
The hall quickly filled with guests and the sounds of pinball being played
The machines were soon nearly all in use
At the back of the hall, the main tournament started with players registering and playing their qualifying games.
Paul registers another player in the main tournament
Craig is one of the first to play
We will be updating this report with all the action from Daventry right across the weekend, so come back for all the latest news, pictures and videos from UK Pinfest 2022.
Continue reading...
