New York’s slice of London in Sadiq Khan £10m tourism campaign
NEW York was treated to a slice of London yesterday, as a handful of Coldstream guards who ordinarily stand watch at Buckingham Palace took to Times Square for the launch of a £10m campaign to lure American tourists back to the capital.
Sadiq Khan was met with an enthusiastic reception from the likes of tourists to local bus drivers.
He was joined by the cast of West end musical Six, a performance about the wives of Henry VIII. The cast, which included Adrianna Hicks and Abbey Mueller, sang live from Times Square.
The West End has struggled to regain momentum, with Andrew Lloyd-Webber’s Cinderella cancelled abruptly earlier this month.
Speaking in Times Square, Khan said: “New York and London are global cities defined by our shared energy, innovation and constant evolution.”
“I can think of nowhere better to launch this exciting campaign encouraging our American friends to discover London.
“We know that visitors to our great city often go on to explore other parts of the UK, so when London succeeds in bringing back tourists it benefits the whole country.
“Our tourism industry was hit hard by the pandemic but will be crucial to our economy bouncing back that’s why I am delighted that our capital is once again ready to welcome visitors from around the world.”
The Let’s Do London campaign, in partnership with London & Partners, is expected to reach over 43 million Americans, as Khan does his whirlwind trip through the US.
It followed a meeting between Khan and New York Mayor Eric Adams, where the pair discussed creating deeper links between the two cities.
Adams called his London counterpart “the rockstar of mayors” as he emphasised the need for a future “based on cities, not national governments”.
It comes after Khan criticised Boris Johnson on his first day of the tour for not taking his lead from Joe Biden and being “on the side of cities”.
Khan is in San Francisco today to meet with Silicon Valley tech giants.