Striking pop-up raises awareness of the danger of the UK’s seas, urging punters to take the H2Only challenge and raise funds for the RNLI. The perils of our much loved coastline will be brought to life at the launch of London’s newest drinking destination – The Bottle, boasting the UK’s largest range of hand-sourced bottled water, all of it straight from the sea.
Pop-up bar, The Bottle is being opened (Thursday 8 – Saturday 10 September) at Pop Brixton to promote the Royal National Lifeboat Institution’s (RNLI) H2Only fundraising challenge, as well as the courage (‘bottle’) of the charity’s volunteer lifeboat crews. The Bottle will showcase 10 different regional varietals of sea water, and every bottle tells a story of a well-loved British or Irish coastal location, and how its water can kill.
Each looks refreshing at first glance but the description and tasting notes highlight the dangerous and often life threatening potential contained inside. All of the water has been sourced from popular shorelines the length and breadth of the UK and Ireland – the same water the RNLI’s volunteer lifeboat crew members save lives from every day, with 7,973 people rescued last year.
Of course, the bottled sea water won’t actually be available to drink. Instead, free bottles of mineral water will be handed out to help people kick start their commitment to stay on the water to help the RNLI stay on the water. Sign up to the challenge at h2only.org.uk and give up the drinks you love for 10 days to raise vital funds for the RNLI.
“It’s a striking way to catch the eye of young Londoners and interest them in the challenge,” – explained Neil Withers, Thames Operations Manager at the RNLI. “It’s also a way for us to showcase the bottle – the courage – of our volunteer lifeboat crew members who brave extreme conditions day-in day-out and rescue an average 22 people per day.
“Londoners may not be aware that the RNLI has lifeboat stations on the Thames, not just on the coast. In fact, Tower Lifeboat Station at Victoria Embankment in the heart of London is our busiest station. Last year, lifeboat crew at Tower launched 465 times, rescuing 90 people and saving 15 lives. It costs around £460,000 a day to run the RNLI’s lifesaving service across the UK and Ireland, so the H2Only challenge is a great way to raise vital funds.”
The H2Only challenge runs from Tuesday 13 September to Friday 23 September. For more information, or to sign-up to take on the H2Only challenge, visit h2only.org.uk.
