Building on the partnership between the Showmen’s Guild and Bacta to promote the EAG show (Entertainment, Attractions and Games Expo) at London’s ExCeL exhibition centre in recent years, the collaboration has developed for the success of the January event
A meeting to cement the working partnership for the 13-15 January 2026 event took place in October at Bacta’s London Head Office, to agree the finer plans that we have been progressing behind the scenes following last year’s success.
Once again the show will include both the Social Immersive Entertainment Expo and the London Casino & Gaming Show, both of which were successfully launched this year.
There is so much crossover from these three co-located and now integrated shows that is of interest to Showmen, both travelling and with settled coastal or inland ventures, as visitors to the event experienced.
As part of the working partnership, we will be presenting preview elements of the shows; the World’s Fair is already working as a media partner in this, mirroring the halcyon days of ATEI in Earls Court when the Showmen were at the centre of the event, with others.
At the meeting we discussed Guild members accessing the BACTA Business Lounge by invitation (with details to follow). The Guild is itself looking to have a welcome desk at the entrance to the Lounge.
There are special rates available for exhibiting at the show; interested members can simply contact [email protected] or call 07555 707942 and quote “Guild” to access the discount. There will be further details of this to follow.
Members can look out for further details, especially signing up for free tickets to EAG, with the show’s logo on the Guild’s website (www.showmensguild.co.uk) and Official Facebook Group; as well as in the World’s Fair’s social media platforms; as well as special emails, including the Sections’; the newsletter and Guild App.
Looking to the future, when the Showmen’s Guild’s annual meeting will coincide with EAG & co-located shows (as Central Council has done in previous years) we discussed the availability of meeting rooms at ExCeL and the potential of affordable hotels for delegates.
Speaking of the growing collaboration between the trade associations, Showmen’s Guild Joe Mercer, commented: “I’m delighted that the Guild is to be working more closely with EAG, continuing in a long tradition of collaboration which remains as strong today as it did when the first version of EAG – the ATE – was launched in the 1930s and over the decades since at London’s Olympia, then at Earls Court.
The EAG has blossomed in the decade since, at ExCeL and in recent years the Showmen have re-engaged in greater number as the show has grown, which is pleasing; I’ve seen this for myself in the last couple of years.
He continued: “The Guild and Bacta share many members and the latest products and trends available in EAG and the new SIE Expo provide inspiration for members who have been delivering fun and immersive leisure experiences for many decades.”
For further overall details of the show visit: https://www.eagexpo.com/
