Imaginative use of technology won聽Newcastle-Gateshead the right to host the Great聽Exhibition of The North.
Newcastle-based Hedgehog Labs put together its bid for the .
Shaun Allan, director of immersive technologies at the pioneering tech firm, explained how when the time came to present he walked into the room and put virtual reality headsets on the judges.
鈥淲e shot a load of landmarks around Newcastle and Gateshead as well as live events such as gigs,鈥� he told 老九品茶Cloud at Prolific North Live last week.
鈥淲e edited it all into a VR experience and took 11 Samsung Gear headsets into the pitch, put them on the judges and said 鈥榯his is what NewcastleGateshead is going to do for the Great Exhibition of the North鈥�.
鈥淎nd we won it鈥� tech was fundamental to us winning that bid.鈥�
Early steam locomotive Stephenson鈥檚 Rocket, designed by Robert Stephenson in 1829 and built in Newcastle, is an example of the city鈥檚 history of engineering innovation.
鈥淲e鈥檙e working on an immersive experience to bring Stephenson鈥檚 Rocket back to life for the exhibition,鈥� continued Allan.
鈥淓ven though a version of the real one is going to be there, we鈥檙e doing a time travel VR piece which will place people on the Rocket travelling through the countryside.
鈥淭here鈥檒l also be an augmented reality app featuring wayfinding and all that stuff to help people find their way around.鈥�
From medical breakthroughs at Newcastle University to smart cities at Science Central, robots and a dress made of graphene, the event will celebrate creativity and innovation across the North in the past but more importantly in the future.
The exhibition will be held from 22nd June to 9th September and feature exhibits, live performances and displays of innovation and art.
Thirty venues on either side of the River Tyne will be involved in the festival, which is supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund and Innovate UK.
There are three main hubs 鈥� the BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, Sage Gateshead and the Great North Museum 鈥� with three 鈥楪et North鈥� trails centred on art, design and innovation.