March/April 2021

PEOPLE
Behind the Scenes with…
Victoria Sigsworth
We meet Victoria, who is
getting events back up and
running at the glorious
Harewood House and
planning for the first open
air production of MAMMA
MIA! this summer
NO TWO days are the same in my role
as events manager at Harewood House
Trust and that’s the thing I love the most
about my job: the variety. Yes, most of
my days at the moment are currently
spent working from home due to the
pandemic, but in usual times, because I
oversee such a varied and diverse area
of the business, one day I could be stood
in the middle on an event field taking
sound readings, surrounded by thousands
of happy, smiling visitors, and the next
I could be managing an exclusive fine
dining experience or drinks reception in
the house for a prestigious brand, or even
royalty.
It also helps that I get to work in such
an incredibly beautiful setting; not
everyone’s lucky enough to say that their
place of work was just recently voted as
Yorkshire’s Large Visitor Attraction of the
Year, too!
One of the Treasure Houses of England,
the historic Georgian house, surrounded
by acres upon acres of stunning parkland,
provides the perfect backdrop for any
event or filming project. We have a
growing programme of events which
covers a broad portfolio of both public
outdoor events and indoor venue hire.
Events range from music concerts and
large sporting events to weddings and
conferences, and we’re always on the
hunt for more new and innovative event
opportunities and ideas to bring to
Harewood.
My day ordinarily starts just before 9am,
however, as anyone who works in events
will know all too well, this can often be
at the crack of dawn in the midst of the
events season! Needs must though, as
it’s always important for me to be one
of the first people on site to ensure that
we’re all set and good to go for the day
ahead (the beautiful sunrises over the
estate definitely do help with the very
early starts though, particularly since I
don’t drink coffee!). At the moment, most
days are currently spent working from my
dining room table at home, with views out
of the window overlooking my garden – I
often find myself wishing I was back in the
office with views over the vast Capability
Brown landscape instead though.
THE DOWNTON ABBEY FILM
GEORGE HEATON
WWW.OPENAIRBUSINESS.COM 73