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Tim Routledge Design creates lighting and production design for broadcast, concert touring and major live events. Pick a player to read their story.

CLASS: LIGHTING DESIGNER

    TIM ROUTLEDGE

    QUEST LOG // career so far

    1. 1996Graduates from the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama and sets off on an international career.
    2. 2009Lighting programmer on the Royal Variety Performance, in 2009 and again in 2010. Lighting director for MTV's Hope For Haiti.
    3. 2010Lighting programmer for the FIFA 2010 Kick Off Concert. Lights Ryder Cup 2010 "Welcome To Wales", the opening gala concert at the Millennium Stadium.
    4. 2012Lead Lighting Programmer for the London 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony, the largest show ever staged in the UK, watched by billions. Associate Lighting Designer on the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Concert. Also lights Gary Barlow's theatre tour and TV special, and Radio 1's Teen Awards at Wembley Arena.
    5. 2013Made an Honorary Fellow and International Chair of the Royal Welsh College. Lighting and set designer for the Radio 1 Teen Awards. Lights Hillsong Conference Europe at the O2.
    6. 2014Lighting Designer for the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games and the Ryder Cup Opening Gala Concert (BBC & Sky). Lighting and set designer for Gary Barlow's Since I Saw You Last tour.
    7. 2015Wins TPi Lighting Designer of the Year for the first time. Take That's III Epic Arena Tour. Lights BBC 6 Music Festival for the second year running.
    8. 2016Lighting Designer on Beyoncé's Formation World Tour. Take That play to 65,000 fans in Hyde Park. Lights the X Factor final live from Wembley Arena and BBC 6 Music Festival for the third year. First Knight of Illumination nomination.
    9. 2017Double Knight of Illumination nominee, for Take That's Wonderland tour and ITV's Ball & Boe. Arena tours for Royal Blood, Steps, Busted and Jeff Lynne's ELO.
    10. 2018Sam Smith's The Thrill Of It All world tour. Stormzy headlines Wireless. X Factor series 15, plus The BRITs Are Coming live on ITV1.
    11. 2019Stormzy headlines Glastonbury. The Spice Girls return with a 13-date stadium tour. Florence + The Machine's High As Hope arena tour and DAVE's Psychodrama tour. Second TPi Lighting Designer of the Year win.
    12. 2020Hat-trick: a third TPi Lighting Designer of the Year title.
    13. 2021Morgan joins TRD as Design Associate. Live At Worthy Farm global livestream, Team GB Homecoming on BBC1 and Gary Barlow's All The Hits Live arena tour.
    14. 2022Concert for Ukraine, which raised £13.4m for the humanitarian crisis. Jessie J's US & Europe tour and BBC1's Big Night of Musicals.
    15. 2023Lighting Designer for the Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool. London welcomes 2023 with fireworks and a drone spectacular. Helene Fischer x Cirque du Soleil and Westlife's Wild Dreams stadium tour.
    16. 2024Wins a BAFTA for Eurovision 2023, his first after four nominations over the past decade, along with an RTS Award and a fourth TPi title. Lights the BAFTA Film and Television Awards.
    17. 2025Back at Eurovision for Basel. Tours for Shirin David and Westlife's 25th Anniversary.
    18. 2026A third Eurovision, in Vienna. Take That's Circus restaged, DAVE's The Boy Who Played The Harp tour, Anna Vissi at the Athens Olympic Stadium and Lewis Capaldi's summer tour.

    HIGH SCORES // honours

    1. BAFTA AWARDEurovision Song Contest 2023, the first win after four nominations★ WIN · 2024
    2. ROYAL TELEVISION SOCIETY AWARDSThree in total, including Multi-Camera Lighting for Eurovision 2023 and Stormzy at Glastonbury★ 3
    3. TPi LIGHTING DESIGNER OF THE YEARA record four titles★ 2015 · 2019 · 2020 · 2024
    4. KNIGHT OF ILLUMINATION AWARDStormzy, Glastonbury Pyramid Stage headline★ WIN
    5. KNIGHT OF ILLUMINATION NOMINATIONS2016 nominee. 2017 double nominee: Concert Touring (Take That, Wonderland, top three) and Light Entertainment (Ball & Boe, ITV)☆ NOM
    6. MIDDLE EAST EVENT AWARDSBest Lighting Design nomination, Gary Barlow live at Media City, Dubai☆ NOM
    7. EUROVISION LIGHTING DESIGNERLiverpool, Basel and Vienna2023 · 2025 · 2026
    8. RWCMD HONORARY FELLOWAnd International Chair, Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama2013

    PARTY MEMBERS // tours & live shows

    THE SPICE GIRLSSTORMZYBEYONCÉJENNIFER LOPEZDAVEZAYNSAM SMITHTAKE THATFLORENCE + THE MACHINEHELENE FISCHERROYAL BLOODRITA ORAGARY BARLOWJEFF LYNNE'S ELOJOURNEYWESTLIFESTEPSBUSTEDMcFLYTHE WAR OF THE WORLDS LIVEKATY PERRYMUSETHE GRAND OLE OPRYKPOP DEMON HUNTERSWIZKIDCHRISTINE & THE QUEENSLEWIS CAPALDILONDON NEW YEAR AT THE LONDON EYE

    LEVELS CLEARED // featured projects

    EUROVISION 2026Wiener Stadthalle
    DAVETouring
    ANNA VISSIAthens Olympic Stadium
    EUROVISION 2025St Jakobshalle, Basel
    SAM SMITHWorld Tour
    TAKE THATThe Circus

    BOSS FIGHTS // the big ones, with crew rolls

    EUROVISION 2026

    WIENER STADTHALLE · ORF / EBU

    The world's largest live television broadcast, lit by Tim for a third time.

    ▶ CREW ROLL
    Client
    ORF / EBU
    Lighting
    Tim Routledge

    EUROVISION 2025

    ST JAKOBSHALLE, BASEL · SRF

    The second Eurovision for Tim and the team, with Florian Wieder's set.

    ▶ CREW ROLL
    Set design
    Florian Wieder
    Lighting
    Tim Routledge
    Associate LDs
    James Scott, Morgan Evans, Zhenya Kostyra
    Programmers
    Tom Young, Alex Mildenhall, Marc Nicholson
    Creative director
    Sacha Jean-Baptiste
    Head of Show
    Yves Schifferle
    Head of Contest
    Christer Björkman
    Directors
    Robin Hofwander, Fredrik Backlund, Myriam Von Necker
    Lighting rental
    Neg Earth Lights
    Production
    Tobias Åberg, Luke Mills

    EUROVISION 2023

    LIVERPOOL ARENA · BBC STUDIOS

    Won a BAFTA, a Royal Television Society Award for Multi-Camera Lighting and TPi Lighting Designer of the Year 2024.

    ▶ CREW ROLL
    Set design
    Julio Himede, Yellow Studio
    Lighting
    Tim Routledge
    Associate LDs
    James Scott, Morgan Evans, Zhenya Kostyra
    Programmers
    Tom Young, Alex Mildenhall, Marc Nicholson
    Creative director
    Dan Shipton
    Exec producer
    Andrew Cartmell
    Head of Show
    Lee Smithhurst
    Directors
    Nikki Parsons, Ollie Bartlett, Richard Valentine
    Lighting rental
    Neg Earth Lights

    STORMZY · GLASTONBURY

    PYRAMID STAGE HEADLINE · 2019

    "In 2012 Danny Boyle brought a farm to East London. In 2019 Stormzy brought South London to the farm." The set was widely acclaimed, took Glastonbury headline slots to a new level and won an RTS Award and a Knight of Illumination Award.

    ▶ CREW ROLL
    Creative producers
    Amber Rimmel & Bronski, TAWBOX
    Lighting
    Tim Routledge
    Set design
    Misty Buckley
    Programmer
    James Scott
    Production manager
    Joel Stanley

    BEYONCÉ · FORMATION

    WORLD STADIUM TOUR · 2016

    Built around Es Devlin's 20m-tall revolving video monolith, on a schedule that moved city every 36 hours with no stage roof. Tim wrapped 600 waterproof LED strobes in a horizon around the back of the stage. The finale played out on a B stage that filled with water.

    ▶ CREW ROLL
    Set design
    Es Devlin
    Lighting
    Tim Routledge
    Programmer / director
    Jonathan Rouse
    Client
    Parkwood Entertainment
    Kit
    Neg Earth, led by Nick Barton

    SPICE GIRLS · SPICE WORLD

    UK & IRELAND STADIUMS · 2019

    A sell-out 13-date stadium tour for the most successful girl group in history. It had a back wall of JDC1 strobes, and every fan got a programmable PixMob wristband to carry the show out across the stadium.

    ▶ CREW ROLL
    Creative producer
    Lee Lodge
    Lighting
    Tim Routledge
    Set design
    Jason Sherwood
    Video
    Kate Moross
    Costume
    Gabriella Slade
    Programmer
    Tom Young

    SAM SMITH · THE THRILL OF IT ALL

    WORLD ARENA TOUR · 2018

    This show reinvented the arena stage space and put Sam among the fans. It plays with volume of light, negative space and perfect timing.

    ▶ CREW ROLL
    Creative producer
    Lee Lodge
    Set design
    Jason Sherwood
    Lighting
    Tim Routledge
    Video
    Studio Moross
    Production manager
    Wob Roberts

    TAKE THAT · THE CIRCUS

    TOUR 2026

    This restaging faithfully reimagined the much-loved 2009 Circus Tour. Tim reworked Patrick Woodroffe's original lighting plot for 2026, and the show was live-streamed on Amazon Prime.

    ▶ CREW ROLL
    Creative director
    Kim Gavin
    Lighting
    Tim Routledge & Patrick Woodroffe
    Set design
    Misty Buckley
    Programmer
    James Scott
    Video content
    Drop The Spoon
    Production manager
    Chris Vaughan

    DAVE · THE BOY WHO PLAYED THE HARP

    TOUR 2026

    Tim co-designed the set with Stufish and co-designed the lighting with Morgan.

    ▶ CREW ROLL
    Creative director
    Matt Askem
    Set design
    Tim Routledge & Stufish
    Lighting
    Tim Routledge & Morgan Evans
    Programmer
    Morgan Evans
    Production
    Paddy Hocken Productions

    ANNA VISSI · ANNA | OAKA

    ATHENS OLYMPIC STADIUM

    Billed as the largest show ever staged in Greece.

    ▶ CREW ROLL
    Creative director
    Kim Gavin
    Lighting
    Tim Routledge
    Set design
    Stufish
    Programmers
    James Scott & Morgan Evans
    Video content
    Luke Halls Studio
    Production manager
    Luke Mills

    LONDON 2012 OPENING CEREMONY

    OLYMPIC STADIUM · 2012

    Tim was Lead Lighting Programmer for the largest show ever staged in the UK, watched by billions around the world.

    ▶ CREW ROLL
    Lighting designers
    Patrick Woodroffe & Adam Bassett
    Lead programmer
    Tim Routledge
    Programmers
    Andy Voller & Pryderi Baskerville
    Kit
    PRG, led by Rich Gorrod

    WORLD SELECT // every level on the map

    CO-OP MODE // regular collaborators

    KIM GAVINCreative director: Take That, Anna Vissi
    PATRICK WOODROFFELondon 2012, Take That's Circus
    ES DEVLINSet designer: Beyoncé Formation
    MISTY BUCKLEYSet designer: Stormzy Glastonbury, The Circus
    JASON SHERWOODSet designer: Spice Girls, Sam Smith
    STUFISHSet design: DAVE, Anna Vissi
    LEE LODGECreative producer: Spice Girls, Sam Smith
    KATE MOROSSVideo: Spice World, Sam Smith
    JAMES SCOTTProgrammer & associate LD
    TOM YOUNGProgrammer: Spice Girls, Eurovision
    ZHENYA KOSTYRAAssociate LD: Eurovision
    NEG EARTH LIGHTSLighting rental: Beyoncé, Eurovision

    PRESS START // in the papers

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