The History and Origins of the
Cyprus Wine Festival
It was back in 1983 that with great expectation, the story of the Cyprus Wine festival, truly began. The desire to protect the Cypriot identity and traditions, coupled with the fact that so many Cypriots were living far away from their beloved Cyprus led to the creation of this event that is widely anticipated every year, not just within the Cypriot community, but also in North London itself.
The idea was first put forward by a small number of Cypriots who were assigned to the progressive Socialist agenda and were themselves members of the Progressive Peoples Working Party of Britain (AKEL).
Parikiaki, whose first edition was printed in September of 1974, originally set out organising various types of events, as a way of generating an additional income. The goals and objective of Parikiaki where and remain to this day as:
Informing the Cypriot Community in Britain of events in Cyprus, Greece and around the world.
Instructing the Community of various political, cultural and social events.
The continuous presentation and promotion of Cypriot products and services, not only within Cypriot homes and Businesses, but all over the significantly enhanced UK market.
With this in mind the paper set about organising and promoting the annual event. Nostalgically the Wine Festival started life in the form of a bazaar where various businesses exhibited their products. Parikiaki on numerous occasions, paraded stands featuring Cypriot beverages and products that would feature advertisements in Greek as well as English. The overwhelming response from the public for products from Cyprus meant that a bigger venue was needed. As a result in 1985 it was decided that the Cypriot Community Centre, located in North London, would stage the event. Partnerships and Sponsorships were struck up with Cypriot companies such as KEO, which supplied the wine that was offered to punters at the entrances, Salamis & Co and Dinos & Sons etc were and still are, among the many contributors exhibiting their fantastic products at reasonable prices. As the festival grew in popularity entertainment in the form of singers, musicians and bands were added, this contributed to the festive atmosphere of the event.
As a result a precedent was set and this included that:
The festival would take place on the last weekend of June,
A representative of Parikiaki would travel to Cyprus in advance to manage the purchasing of the ‘panayirkotica'
Increased efforts to include more stands and provide traditional Cypriot cuisine (Souvlakia) within the confines of the premises.
Commitment to continually upgrade the entertainment each year.
These efforts were fully realised, the crowds got larger each year and more and more businesses began to show interest forcing the committee to find a more suitable venue. Subsequently in 1990, the next big step was taken with the move to Alexandra Palace, with this bold initiative the Cyprus wine festival became a two day extravaganza and established itself as one of the main events not only in the Cypriot Community, but in North London also.
Furthermore up until 2001, the festival was held in Alexandra Palace's West Hall, a 2500 square meter exhibition venue which a few years later, again proved to be too small, as the event continued to grow in size, going from strength to strength.
The Festival was finally moved to the Great Hall and became known as the Cyprus Wine Festival & Business Exhibition, increasing the exhibitor's space while at the same time offering new and improved facilities. Today as it stands the 6500 square meter venue can accommodate the many successful businesses of the Greek Cypriot community, including the Cypriot banks, airlines, major industries, manufacturers and importers. All well established in their domain and some having developed into household names in the country.
Throughout the years, the Cyprus Wine festival has managed to attract a large participation in excess of 20,000 visitors from all sections of the Cypriot community and in particular the local community in Haringey and North London, including many British visitors who have the opportunity to taste all things Greek and experience the Cypriot culture.
The Cyprus Wine Festival in essence is a celebration of the Cypriot culture and heritage, a fact that honours our community. This event, that took a lot of struggle and effort to become recognized, is today a joyous and celebratory occasion, that will be preserved and continue to improve. As one of the biggest and most celebrated annual events in the community, the Cyprus Wine Festival and Business Exhibition can only continue to get bigger and better.