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Tudor Kitchens brought to life at Hampton Court Palace

The Tudor kitchens at Hampton Court Palace were used during the reign of King Henry VIII, and they continued to be used as Royal Court kitchens for a further two hundred years.  Over the past few years they have been the setting for a research project run by a team of food archaeologists working once a month within the visitors view, to recreate the dishes that King Henry would have enjoyed.

In their day, the Tudor Kitchens on the cooler, north side of the palace, comprised of fifty-five rooms covering 3,000 square feet, and were incredibly busy spaces staffed by 200 people preparing meals not just or a king, but 600 meals twice a day for all the Royal court.

Meat preparation in Tudor Kitchens

This can be hard for the visitor realise when touring a now quiet empty building, so Integrated Circles were appointed to help bring the kitchen and surrounding area to life, though the use of sound, lights and smells, providing visitors with an active experience,  particularly during visits when the demonstrations are not taking place.

Digital SoundStores, Smell pots, solid state lighting dimmers and controllers were among Integrated Circles armoury in providing a solution within this fine listed building. A complete Kitchen soundscape was designed and recorded, which had to give the impression of a busy days cooking in the various kitchens, while fireplaces crackle in sympathy with the flame effects, and smells of cooked meat and stored fish permeate to complete the overall experience.

Integrated Circles Technical Director Simon Beer explains “this is not the sort of building where a rack of control equipment can be placed centrally, as cable ways were not provisioned by Tudor architects and being a listed building today has meant all equipment needs to be positioned locally to each of the effects. The equipment has to be very discreet, but also solid state and robust in design in order to survive the harsh running conditions, particularly during winter in this cold and draughty building”

Integrated Circles Digital SoundStores and VideoStores are designed for the riggers of daily use in museums and visitor centres, and are supplied with warranties of up to ten years.

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