Annual Dinner 2010

On the evening of the Thursday 27th of May, over 850 of the industry's finest arrived at the Grosvenor Hotel, Park Lane, London to enjoy a truly astonishing evening at the ABFA Annual Dinner 2010.

This year the number of attendees again demonstrated how popular this event is and what an important social engagement this event is in the industry's calendar.

The evening began with a Champagne Reception on the balcony of the Great Room where guests were welcomed by the ABFA team and Toastmaster. The balcony was the perfect place to network and gave guests their first view of the wonderful room below, where live classical music was being played.

Once everyone was seated, Maurice Craft, ABFA Chairman, kicked off the evening with a welcome speech. This was followed by grace from Edward Wilde.

As always the food was delicious, proving the Grosvenor, once again, to be the perfect venue for this prestigious event. During dinner Maurice took the stage to introduce a charity raffle, and between the main course and the dessert the audience were in for a surprise with a touch of entertainment performed by the famous Rainer Hersch and his Orchestra. Their performance certainly lifted the atmosphere of the evening, with spoons and forks and knives all being used to create music around the room.

After dinner we held a charity raffle in aid of The Gene Machine, a leukaemia charity founded by Hilary Craft at Regency Factors. We are pleased to announce that just over £14,000 was raised on the night and this is going towards the funding of a Research Scientist at the Haematology Department, Manchester Royal Infirmary. We cannot thank you all enough for your generous donations in support of such a worthwhile cause.

Next our after-dinner speaker, an English writer, comedian, actor and radio and television presenter Jason Manford, took to the stage and performed amazingly. He is a master of observational comedy and his humour received great reaction from the audience.

After a final thank you from Maurice, it was time for the party. Everybody was ready to have a good time and the group 'Rollacoaster' did not disappoint! The party began in full swing with a great selection of modern and pop hits which encouraged many onto the floor to dance the night away. The party was lively and dance floor was full for the entire night.

We hope that all those that attended enjoyed it. We look forward to welcoming you again next year! Details and location to be announced nearer the time.

More photos of this event are available from our photo gallery.