The Coronation AR experience on Sky News
April 27, 2023
By Nik Roseveare
Atlantic Productions, has created an immersive digital experience that will allow viewers following the Coronation to interact with the Crown Jewels that will be used to crown King Charles III on May 6th. The experience is available exclusively via the Sky News App and website on smartphones around the globe. The AR experience also gives people the chance to enjoy the Regalia in close-up three-dimensional detail.
Atlantic Productions was able to capture a 1:1 scale digital twin of King Charles’ Coronation Crown, the St. Edward’s Crown – as well as the Queen Consort’s Crown, the Queen Mary’s Crown. This access allows users to put the Crowns onto their living room table, and then interact and learn about it. Users can look up close and move around the gold, diamonds and precious stones and learn about their history and craftsmanship.
The AR experience also includes exclusive macro footage shot at the Tower of London of other significant Crown Jewels: The Sword of Offering, The Sovereign’s Sceptre, the Coronation Spoon and the Sovereign’s Orb, the Ampulla.
The Coronation: The Immersive AR Experience is produced by immersive company, Alchemy, part of the Atlantic Productions group, with thanks to the Royal Household.
Anthony Geffen, CEO and Creative Director of Atlantic Productions, said: “The eyes of the world will be on London for the Coronation of Charles III and while the ceremony itself is almost a millennium old, the Royal Household has granted use of the latest technologies to deliver a 21st century Coronation. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II brought television cameras into Westminster Abbey and following in her innovative footsteps, the Royal Household has allowed an object central to the Coronation to be delivered via augmented reality into every home that has access to a smart phone or tablet. I am proud to be involved in this unique piece of public engagement with thanks to the Royal Household.”
John Ryley, Head of Sky News, said: “Whether unifying or polarising, the spectacle of the King’s Coronation is guaranteed to capture the world’s attention. A first for a Coronation, Sky News is giving audiences the chance to hold a part of history in their hands, getting up close to the Crown Jewels in all their splendor and glory from the comfort of their living room and fully immersing audiences in the pomp and pageantry of this special event.