The Sultan's Elephant arrives in London
{{date|May 5, 2006}}

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'''Schedule''' <!-- would like this to sit in a nice infobox to one side -->

'''Thursday May 4'''

Prologue: a mysterious arrival

'''Friday May 5'''

The spectacle begins / Tour

2 p.m. – 3 p.m.,
5 p.m. – 8 p.m.

'''Saturday May 6'''

Sightseeing / A sultan’s welcome

9:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.,
3 p.m. – 6 p.m.

'''Sunday May 7'''

Sunday in the city / Finale

11 a.m. – 1 p.m.,
3 p.m. – 6 p.m.
</div>

<!-- This is going to be a big story when it arrives. Hopefully, by sketching out the background to the story in advance, we can cover this story as soon as it hits London, when the media will be all over it. If we can get Wikinews to cover the event in depth, it should be a good showcase for what we can do. It will be good to encourage Londoners to send us their photos/stories directly too, rather than having to rely on secondary sources.-->

'[[w:The Sultan's Elephant|The Sultan's Elephant]]', an enormous theatrical spectacle, has arrived in London on the start of its four day show. The elephant, a huge moving stage measuring forty feet high and weighing 42 tonnes, is the creation of the [[w:Royal de Luxe|Royal de Luxe]] theatre company. The elephant will move through London, accompanied by a troop of puppeteers and circus acts, telling the story of the Sultan who set off to find the little girl from his dreams with a time-travelling elephant.
{{missing image|Image:The_Sultans_Elephant-Rocket.jpg|left|thumb|The rocket, crashed in London. By [http://www.flickr.com/photos/edvvc/140514788/ edvvc]}}At a rumoured cost of £1 million, The Sultan's Elephant is one of the biggest public art pieces ever performed in London. The project has been organised by Helen Marriage and Nicky Webb from Artichoke Productions, and has required co-operation and funding from a number of different bodies, including the Arts Council England, the Mayor of London and the City of Westminster.

The story began on Wednesday, when a 'crashed spaceship' landed in London, smashing up the pavement around it. The elephant first made an appearance on the Thursday.

{{missing image|Image:The_Sultans_Elephant_in_London.jpg|left|thumb|The elephant. By [http://www.flickr.com/photos/edvvc/140514788/ edvvc]}}

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'''Seen the elephant?''' Send us your '''photos''', '''videos''' and '''stories'''. You can upload your photos to Wikinews by registering with an account and hitting [http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Special:Upload Upload], or you can e-mail them to '''wikinews.pics@gmail.com''' (e-mail ran by a Wikinews member). You can also send us your updates on the elephant story and movements by leaving a message on the wikinews hotline: '''0871-218-6397'''.</div>

==Related Infos==
* [http://www.thesultanselephant.com Official Site]
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/features/sultans_elephant/ The Sultan's Elephant on BBC London - official media partners]
* [http://www.sean.co.uk/photography/lightbox/sultans_elephant_london.shtm Review and photos at www.sean.co.uk]

==Sources==
*{{source|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/4976032.stm
|title=Mechanical beast to start parade
|author=|pub=BBC News Online|date=riday, 5 May 2006}}

[[Category:United Kingdom]]
{{publish}}
{{Archive-unreviewed}}

[[Category:Theatre]]
'Schedule' 

'Thursday May 4'

Prologue: a mysterious arrival

'Friday May 5'

The spectacle begins / Tour

2 p.m. – 3 p.m.,
5 p.m. – 8 p.m.

'Saturday May 6'

Sightseeing / A sultan’s welcome

9:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.,
3 p.m. – 6 p.m.

'Sunday May 7'

Sunday in the city / Finale

11 a.m. – 1 p.m.,
3 p.m. – 6 p.m.


'The Sultan's Elephant', an enormous theatrical spectacle, has arrived in London on the start of its four day show. The elephant, a huge moving stage measuring forty feet high and weighing 42 tonnes, is the creation of the Royal de Luxe theatre company. The elephant will move through London, accompanied by a troop of puppeteers and circus acts, telling the story of the Sultan who set off to find the little girl from his dreams with a time-travelling elephant.
At a rumoured cost of £1 million, The Sultan's Elephant is one of the biggest public art pieces ever performed in London. The project has been organised by Helen Marriage and Nicky Webb from Artichoke Productions, and has required co-operation and funding from a number of different bodies, including the Arts Council England, the Mayor of London and the City of Westminster.

The story began on Wednesday, when a 'crashed spaceship' landed in London, smashing up the pavement around it. The elephant first made an appearance on the Thursday.

'Seen the elephant?' Send us your 'photos', 'videos' and 'stories'. You can upload your photos to Wikinews by registering with an account and hitting  Upload, or you can e-mail them to 'wikinews.pics@gmail.com' (e-mail ran by a Wikinews member). You can also send us your updates on the elephant story and movements by leaving a message on the wikinews hotline: '0871-218-6397'.
United Kingdom Theatre