AV & event hire · Peterborough
Sound, lighting and LED for Peterborough.
A cathedral city with a big-business streak: a conference centre with a 1,700-seat auditorium, hotel ballrooms, a showground and an Embankment that fills with marquees every summer. We produce awards nights, conferences, weddings and outdoor events in Peterborough — and we have already run a 200-guest awards evening here.
Getting there
The far edge of our map, planned like it.
Peterborough sits at the western edge of the area we cover, roughly 80 miles from our base at Roydon, near Diss. There are two sensible routes: west through Thetford and Ely and then across the Fens via March and Whittlesey, or down the A11 and A14 towards Huntingdon and up the A1(M). Either way, allow approximately an hour and three-quarters in a loaded van. That is an approximate figure, and the A14 in particular can add a good deal more at peak times, so we choose the route on the day.
A drive that long changes how a job is planned. We confirm the venue's get-in time, the loading bay and where the van parks in writing well before the day, because an hour lost at the far end pushes everything else late. We carry spares for anything that matters — a second radio-mic receiver, a backup playback laptop, spare cables and power — so a fault is fixed in minutes rather than by a trip home. And for an early start, we will tell you honestly whether building the evening before is the better plan, which many hotels and conference centres allow.
Delivery is priced by distance and shown as its own line in your quote, not buried in the equipment. Dry hire collected from Roydon is possible, but at this distance most Peterborough customers prefer us to deliver, build and run the event.
Our work in Peterborough
A 200-guest awards night at the Holiday Inn Peterborough.
For the Peterborough Community Business Awards we built and ran the whole show environment for a black-tie dinner of 200 guests at the Holiday Inn Peterborough. That meant an aluminium stage of around 20 square metres with a pipe-and-drape backdrop and a branded lectern, quad truss on wind-up stands, a 3m × 2m LED wall built from twelve 3.9mm-pitch panels, moving heads, LED battens and twelve battery uplighters, and a speaker system with subwoofers and wireless microphones.
The show itself ran from a branded deck and a master running order of 203 cues, played back live from front of house with a backup laptop ready, and an audio, video and lighting technician on the night. It is the clearest example of what we bring to a Peterborough function room: a written plan, kit sized to the room and a crew who run the evening so the organisers can host it. Read the full case study.
Venues in and around Peterborough
From the cathedral to the showground.
Peterborough's event spaces are unusually varied for a city of its size — a Norman cathedral, purpose-built conference halls, a theatre on the river, hotel suites and acres of open showground. Here is what each tends to need.
- Peterborough CathedralThe cathedral hires out its Nave Crossing for receptions of around 250, lectures of around 120 and dinners of around 60, and the space hosts book signings and a summer recital series. Speech in a Norman nave needs distributed speakers and close microphones rather than volume, and every stand and cable has to be freestanding and tidy.
- KingsGate Conference Centre, Staplee WayA large conference venue on the edge of the city with on-site parking, a 1,700-seat auditorium and conference suites holding around 285 and 330. Rooms of this scale often have house systems, so our role is usually the extras: presenter radio mics, confidence monitors, an LED wall or larger screen, recording feeds and an operator for the day.
- The Cresset, BrettonA community and entertainment venue with three function suites used for weddings, parties and events. Function suites like these suit a compact PA, a DJ or band system and uplighting to change the feel of the room after dinner.
- The Bull Hotel, WestgateA city-centre hotel with conference and banqueting facilities. City-centre hotels usually mean a tight get-in and a ballroom that is in use until mid-afternoon, which shapes how — and when — a stage and screen go in.
- East of England Arena & Events Centre, AlwaltonThe showground site just off the A1(M), long the home of Truckfest and other large outdoor shows. Open sites like this need power distribution, cable runs measured in tens of metres and IP-rated kit, all planned as part of the system.
- The Embankment and the Key TheatreThe riverside open space by the Nene that hosts the beer festival's marquees and the start and finish of the Great Eastern Run, with the Key Theatre alongside. Outdoor events here need weatherproof PA, an announcer's mic that carries over a crowd, and power planned in advance.
Apart from the Holiday Inn Peterborough, where we produced the awards evening described above, we name these venues to help you plan, not to claim them as our clients. We check each venue's rules on access, noise and power directly before the day.
Local event calendar
When Peterborough is busiest.
Peterborough's calendar runs from a showground weekend in spring to a city-centre half marathon in autumn, with the biggest outdoor crowds of the year on the Embankment in late summer.
| When | What's on |
|---|---|
| Early May bank holiday | Truckfest has traditionally filled the East of England Arena at Alwalton over the May Day weekend. |
| Summer | Peterborough Cathedral's summer recital series in the Nave Crossing, alongside the city's wedding season. |
| Late August | Peterborough Beer Festival on the Embankment — five days of large outdoor marquees and live music, running 25–29 August in 2026 and drawing around 25,000 visitors. |
| Early September | The Burghley Horse Trials at Burghley House near Stamford, a short drive north-west of the city — accommodation and roads tighten up across the area. |
| Mid-October | The Great Eastern Run half marathon, starting and finishing on the Embankment (11 October in 2026). |
| September – December | Awards season and Christmas parties: business awards, charity galas and office dinners fill hotel ballrooms and conference suites — and our diary. |
Dates are those published for 2026 where available; check with the organisers before planning around them.
Which services suit
Matching the kit to a Peterborough event.
Ballroom shows that run to time
Stage, LED wall, walk-on music, award stings and a written running order, run live by a crew. See awards and gala production, LED screen hire and stage hire.
Presentations that work first time
Lectern and radio mics, confidence monitors, screens sized to the room and an engineer for the session — see conference AV hire. For public meetings add a hearing loop; for larger venues, steward radio comms.
Function suites and marquees
Ceremony and speech mics, a PA for the band or DJ, and uplighting. Garden and estate receptions: marquee AV and festoon lighting. More on our weddings page.
Peterborough advice
Hotel ballrooms and the afternoon get-in.
Most of Peterborough's awards nights and gala dinners happen in hotel suites that are busy with something else until the middle of the afternoon. Planning around that window is the difference between a calm evening and a rushed one.
Ask the right questions early
When can we get into the room, and is anything booked in it during the day? Where is the loading door, how far is it from the room, and is there a lift? What time do the doors open to guests, and when does the room have to be clear at night? What power is in the room, and are there circuits we should avoid? The answers decide the crew size and whether the stage and LED wall go in that afternoon or the night before.
We ask these questions for you and confirm the answers in writing with the venue's events team.
Build it so the evening is calm
Rig and focus the lighting first, then the screen and sound, then a full technical rehearsal with the presenter and the running order — even a short one catches the slide that will not play or the walk-on track in the wrong place. Have the backup laptop running in parallel, and agree with the hotel when tables are laid so nobody is working round each other.
With an 80-mile run from our base, all of this is decided before the van leaves, not on arrival.
Common questions
AV hire in Peterborough, answered.
Do you really cover Peterborough from Diss?
Yes. It is roughly 80 miles and approximately an hour and three-quarters by van, either across the Fens via Ely and March or by the A14 and A1(M). We plan Peterborough jobs around that drive — confirmed get-in times, spares on the van and, where it helps, an evening-before build — and delivery is shown separately in your quote.
Have you worked in Peterborough before?
Yes. We produced the Peterborough Community Business Awards at the Holiday Inn Peterborough: a black-tie dinner for 200 with a stage, a 3m × 2m LED wall, moving-head lighting, wireless microphones and a 203-cue running order run live from front of house. The case study has the full details.
Can you work alongside a conference centre's own AV?
Yes. Large venues often have house sound and projection, so we talk to the venue's technical team first and supply only what the event adds — presenter radio mics, confidence monitors, an LED wall, recording feeds or an operator for the day. You are not charged for kit the room already has.
Can you set up the evening before an early start?
Usually, if the venue allows it. For a morning conference or a tight afternoon get-in, building the night before takes the pressure off and leaves time for a proper technical check. We agree access, security of the equipment overnight and any extra costs with you and the venue in advance.
Do you supply outdoor events on the Embankment or a showground?
Yes. We supply weatherproof PA, an announcer's microphone, stage and lighting, plus the 16A, 32A and 63A power distribution and cable runs an open site needs, and we can coordinate a generator. Permission and any licence conditions come from the site owner, and we send our insurance and risk assessment wherever they are needed.
How much notice do you need for an awards night or Christmas party?
For September to December, three to six months is sensible, because that is awards and party season across the region. Midweek dates and the first half of the year are often available at much shorter notice, so it is always worth asking.
Nearby
Other pages near Peterborough.
Planning something in Peterborough?
Send the date, the venue and roughly how many guests. You'll get a clear, itemised quote within one working day — including delivery to Peterborough, shown up front.