HYPER JAPAN is the largest exhibition celebrating Japanese culture to be held in the UK. Organized by Cross Media Ltd., it was first held in London 2010, and since 2014, has taken place twice a year, in July and November. It takes place in Olympia, London.

Centred on Japanese cuisine and popular culture such as gaming, manga, anime and music, the event introduces a wide range of Japanese culture, encompassing technology, fashion, traditional crafts. The venue is divided into three main areas; the stage area, the exhibition area and the experience area. The summer and winter events have different themes. The theme of the summer event is a festival of popular culture, while the winter event is a shopping and merchandising event centred around Christmas shopping.

HYPER JAPAN was developed in 2010, the brainchild of Cross Media Ltd.’s President and Representative Director Mr. Kazuhiro Marumo, as a fusion of Japanese cuisine, which is increasingly popular in the UK, and Japanese pop culture, which was already booming across Europe. In this sense, it is different from the many pop culture events that are currently held around the world by local fan communities.

From the first event in 2010 to the fifth event in 2013, HYPER JAPAN was staged irregularly, roughly once every nine months. Since 2014, it has been held twice a year, with a summer event in July and a Christmas event in winter. Since 2015, the summer event has taken place the week after the Japan Expo in Paris, and the Christmas event is held during the last weekend in November, which coincides with Black Friday.

As the event has grown in scale, it has moved to larger venues around London. In 2017, it took place in Tobacco Dock in the east of the city.

From the first event until the present, the Tokyo head office of the Japan Publications Trading Co., Ltd [ja] has been an official event partner, and has provided back-up for exhibitors coming from Japan. In 2014, ASOBISYSTEM, Co., Ltd. [ja], which is home to model Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, joined as an official partner, and HYPER KAWAii was staged as a sub-event as a collaboration between HYPER JAPAN and HARAJUKU KAWAii. The event is also sponsored by Japanese governmental and industry bodies such as the Embassy of Japan in London, the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), The Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO), the Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR), the Japan Foundation, the Association of Japanese Animations, the Visual Industry Promotion Organization [ja] (VIPO), the Foundation for the Promotion of Music Industry and Culture (PROMIC) and the Digital Content Association of Japan.

A number of sub-events are organized as part of the event, all allowing visitors to vote for their favourite food and drink. The Sushi Awards aim to find the best sushi in the UK, the Sake Experience gathers together ten Japanese sake brewers with the aim of finding the UK's favourite sake and the Sake Cocktail awards determines the nation's favourite sake cocktail. The Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries has also participated on numerous occasions, holding cooking demonstrations, tasting corners and stage shows to drive publicity of Japanese cuisine and ingredients. Many Japanese food manufacturers also take part by taking exhibitor stands and doing cooking demonstrations.

Many UK-based exhibitors sell a range of goods, including toys, figurines, clothing, books, magazines, fashion accessories, homeware, kitchen items, stationery and comics related to Japanese popular culture. A number of Japanese companies have exhibited as well, including Nintendo, Bandai Namco, Square Enix, Konami, Toei Animation, Kodansha Europe and Niconico. Since the first event, there has been a Cosplay show participated in by UK-based fans, and for a time, the UK heat of the World Cosplay Summit was held at the event. Many guest speakers from Japan have also appeared, including producer Mitsuhisa Ishikawa, director Naoyoshi Shiotani, writer Hirokatsu Kihara [ja], voice actor Takashi Kondo and film director Satoshi Miki. Commenting just after his appearance, Ishikawa said, “I had thought that the UK was a conservative country, and may not appreciate the kind of edgy works we were creating, but I really feel that truly great work can transcend national boundaries. I really get the impression that Japanese culture is appreciated, so I hope that this kind of event will continue in the future.”