After receiving floods of epic entries, 10 finalists were chosen for Games Room of the Year 2023 and we left it up to the Great British Public to decide who they wanted to crown as the winner. Well... the Nation has spoken, and we have got to say the winner is so deserving of the Games Room of the Year 2023 title.
Huge Congratulations to Ben Griss and the Hornet's Nest games room!
We had the privilege of meeting Ben and taking a look at his incredible games room. Ben has taken his love of football and turned it into a unique collectors' paradise. His space is a shrine to Watford FC complete with a football table and full darts setup. We were in awe to stand beneath the canopy of football scarfs... over 100 of them! We had a great time catching up with Ben to find out all about his love for the game, his quality games room design and how it feels to be the 2023 winner.
Check out Ben's reaction and his new Games Room of the Year 2023 winner plaque:
If you want the fully-loaded tour of the Hornet's nest then click below for serious games room inspiration:
Ben's key inspiration comes from his outstanding love for Watford FC, being a fan for over 3 decades. Ben decided to convert his detached double garage into a sports bar and games room to save all of his collected merchandise from storage and to showcase the collection in all it's glory. Starting in March 2020, during lockdown, Ben designed and completed all of the DIY himself with only one power tool. His work has taken a long journey, but we are thrilled to be able to crown the finished space with the Games Room of the Year title.
The design behind the room has been cleverly created by Ben to simulate a changing room environment with shirts on the wall and changing room benches. We think it's genius and such a great space to hang out in.
Watford has a great family focus and one of the first family stands, as well and doing a lot to support their community, which is part of Ben's love for the club. Ben has a signed shirt worn by Luther Blisset taking pride of place on display, and Blisset himself has been in touch with Ben showing interest to officially open the Hornet's Nest. Ben says it would be a dream to have his hero in his very own Hornet's Nest.
It has been brilliant to meet Ben and see the Hornet's Nest in the flesh. What a great finish for the Games Room of the Year 2022 and a much deserved winner.
If you have been inspired by Ben then now is the time to get your space ready for the next Games Room of the Year competition. Entries will be open in Autumn 2023 and we cannot wait to see the next contestants and their out-of-this-world games rooms.