The Access Review : Harley Quinn’s Roller Disco 2020
Daisy Brookes/Ekko Cosplay
This evening I was lucky enough to nab tickets to Warner Bros latest interactive event: Harley Quinn’s Roller Disco! Set up in the Steelyard Club which is just a 5 minute walk from Bank Station, what looks like a bleak building has been transformed into the colourful and manic world of one Harley Quinn. Being a Roller Disco, I really didn’t think I’d be able to attend or have all that much fun, but my love for Harley and Co meant I couldn’t turn the chance to party the night away like I’ve just dumped the Joker and formed my own amazing Girl Gang!
The tickets suggest you arrive 15 minutes before doors, our session started at 8pm so we dutifully turned up at 7:45 in our most outlandish garb. I had emailed ahead to ask about access and what the event would be like and was told that whilst the previous session emptied out they might be able to offer me a seat somewhere but otherwise it was just a waiting game. I asked on the door and the security very much denied any possibility of this, luckily I was prepared for this and it didn’t hinder me too much. They said my best bet was to let the first handler I know I was there and they’d do their best to keep an eye and make sure everything was going well throughout the night- which they did!
Eight on the dot we were shown in, given wristbands and drink tickets and let loose in the world of vibrant neon lights and colour. Staff guided us straight to a bar where I picked up my first mocktail. All the themed drinks came with a non-alcoholic version which was a really amazing touch, most places only have one mocktail so it was such a nice change! Just in this first room there were so many things to interact with. A few seats at the bar meant a couple of us could chill whilst others got some glitter at the Glam Studio. I’ve never been to an event with a more Instagram-able location! Dump your stuff in the cloakroom, grab a free tote bag and head round to the disco floor!
This is where I hit my first (and realistically only) hiccup, I wasn’t able to skate and all the food and seating was upstairs. After a quick go at the High Striker (I made it on to the leader board), a friend and I tackled the stairs to have a little rest whilst the rest of our gang took to the skates. What we didn’t expect to come across upstairs was free pizza, pick n mix and candy floss! All of these came with allergen info as well which meant nothing was off limits- yay! We sat and stuffed our faces with pizza and sweets before heading back down to grab another drink and find the toilets.
What can I say, we look great!
The toilets did happen to be up some other stairs but there was little to no queue and a decently sized disabled toilet that I had a little peak in. With the sessions only lasting an hour I didn’t actually need to go but it was good to see that they were at least clean and to an extent, accessible. With such a small running event I understand that things like this are very location limited, and London venues are still some of the least accessible out there, but for what it was, The Steelyard did a great job and I can let this be.
Before we knew it, the session was coming to a close. Personally an hour just isn’t long enough, most people had barely had their finished their first drinks before the sirens went off and it was time to leave the area. I was a little saddened that all the cool photo op areas were on the disco floor but a couple of wonderfully kind handlers let me wait until the end to go on to the floor and get some photos with my friends. It’s these small acts of kindness and acceptance that make a huge different to a little event like this, I felt that even though I couldn’t actually skate, I still got to do everything there. The staff truly were wonderful, kind and caring. They went above and beyond at every opportunity they could and I really felt cared for and looked out for. It made the whole experience so much more enjoyable.
It was a really fun way to spend the evening, and perfect for any DC fan. I really hope Warner Bros continue this trend of mini promo events. Last years “Christmas Fare” for the release of Shazam! was another fantastic little visit out and it feels like a really inventive way to promote a film and get fans involved and excited. I personally cannot wait to see this film, it truly looks like a great girl gang experience!! All I can say is I wish it had been longer, I think had we not all had places to be the next morning, we’d have tried to sneak in to the next session to get another go round!
