Prizes and surprises: Virgin Red’s floating ice cream van hits a sweet note for Londoners this week

Hundreds of Londoners descended on a floating ice cream van on South Bank this week, scooping free cones and incredible prizes from Virgin’s new rewards club. 

The unique installation saw an ice cream truck suspended in mid-air from a bunch of 99 Virgin Red balloons – to celebrate the sense of fun and adventure at the heart of Virgin Red.

Passersby at South Bank’s Observation Point on Wednesday (14 July) were treated to a one-day-only spectacle and were invited to create a 99 flake with a twist. Guests could choose from an extraordinary selection of red toppings – from traditional sprinkles to chilli flakes and even ketchup – to make an ice cream all of their own.  

Visitors to the pop-up on a sunny summer's day included Virgin Radio host Kate Lawler. The former Big Brother star rocked with her family and adorable dogs, Shirley and Baxter, who got to share a Mr Whippy on Virgin Red.

Free ice cream and the exhibit alone were enough to put smiles on faces at the event. But Virgin Red had a few extra surprises up its sleeve. The treats just kept flowing as the Virgin Red 99 Red Balloons truck played a special song throughout the day, marking a flash giveaway of 99 Virgin Points prizes.

98 lucky winners walked away with 10,000 Virgin Points each on the spot: enough for Virgin Red rewards such as a case of delicious Virgin Wines, business flights to Paris or a fancy cream tea for two.

The 99th winner, however, was the luckiest of them all. Popping by the ice cream van by chance, surprise champion Rebecca bagged a jackpot **one million points** to spend with Virgin Red. 

Dancing with joy, Rebecca said she was “really, really chuffed” to bag the mahoosive prize on a whim. The million points can be spent on a whole bunch of Virgin Red rewards: including New York flights, West End theatre tickets, luxury holidays, and so much more. As Rebecca reveals in the video below, it could even make her dream of a trip to South America a reality.

Virgin Red was also busy making dreams come true on Instagram this week, with another flash giveaway of one million Virgin Points online to add to the fun ‘n’ games. To enter, Instagrammers described what they would do with the jackpot if they won; and the combinations were endless, from ocean voyages to paradise retreats. 

Lucky winner Fay said she was “utterly speechless” to bag the prize, as her name was announced in an Instagram video last night. Alongside the one million points, Virgin Red also gave away a bunch more points prizes on social channels to mark the occasion. 

Free cones, a floating ice cream van, and points to spend on treats and adventures – what’s not to smile about? It’s all part of Virgin Red’s mission to hook you up with the things you love, and make your life more extraordinary.

Missed the event and social giveaways? No worries – there’s plenty more fun where that came from. Join Virgin Red and follow us on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter to stay tuned with all our amazing rewards, plus regular competitions to win points and prizes. 

You can also catch up on all the highlights from Wednesday’s live floating ice cream spectacle – the likes of which have never been seen before in central London – in the gallery below. Dive right in to scroll through all the sunshine action, or watch our highlights video here. 

Images: Joe Pepler/PinPep