Record 20 places hoping to be named UK’s city of culture

Cornwall, Country Durham and Newport among others vying for accolade

Coventry Cathedral (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

A record twenty places from around the UK are battling to become the nation’s City of Culture 2025.

Entrants making their bid to be crowned the most cultural city in the UK have to prove that they can put the arts at the heart of their plans to recover from the coronavirus pandemic.

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport has encouraged an all-time high for entries by awarding grants of £40,000 to those places that are successfully longlisted.

The winner, which will be announced next year, will take on the baton from Coventry – the 2021 UK City of Culture. Laura McMillan, manager of the Coventy City of Culture Trust, spoke of winning the accolade as a “game changer” for the city, saying it had been “for too long overlooked and undervalued”. Eleven places bid for the title of 2021 City of Culture, with Paisley, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland and Swansea making the shortlist.

The twenty hopefuls include, Cornwall, County Durham, Lancashire, Medway, Newport, Southampton, Stirling, Wolverhampton and the Wakefield District, among others.

Winners of the title attract millions of visitors, investment and a chance to bring communities together to showcase their city. Former 2017 City of Culture, Hull, saw £220m of investment and 800 new jobs generated by title.

Darren Henley, Arts Council England chief executive, referred to Hull’s “year in the spotlight” as a “rip-roaring, awe-inspiring, life-enhancing success.”

The winners also get support from the government to ensure the programme’s lasting legacy. Coventry received over £15.5m from the government to support its year as UK City of Culture.

The twenty bidders will be whittled down to a long-list in the coming weeks and then cut down further to a shortlist in early 2022. The winner will be announced in May 2022.

Culture secretary Oliver Dowden said: “This record number of applications from all four corners of the country is testament to the huge success of City of Culture in generating investment, creating jobs and boosting local pride.

“This prestigious prize creates a fantastic opportunity for towns and cities to build back better from the pandemic and I wish all bidders the very best of luck.”

Sir Phil Redmond, chair of the City of Culture Expert Advisory Panel, said: “From Derry-Londonderry to Hull and Coventry it has been a difficult and rewarding challenge to select the next UK City of Culture, and the list of potential candidates for 2025 indicates that life in the immediate future is going to be even more challenging!

“The three previous holders have demonstrated the transformative and catalytic effect culture can bring about, even within places that have been ultimately unsuccessful but have gone on to develop collaborative and sustainable partnerships.”