News / UK City of Culture
Bristol bids to become UK City of Culture 2029
Could Bristol follow Derry, Hull, Coventry and Bradford to become the UK’s next City of Culture?
That’s the bold ambition from a group of people working in the arts across Bristol who have been toiling behind the scenes for the last few months ahead of submitting a bid to hold the crown in 2029.
The winning city will receive a £10m prize pot from the government to support with the delivery of a 12-month programme of events, with Bristol’s bid focusing on using culture to tackle inequality.
According to the Department for Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS), the UK City of Culture competition – deep breath – “aims to celebrate and support communities in places up and down the UK to use culture as a catalyst for transforming places and the lives of people through driving growth and good jobs, creating richer lives with choices and opportunities for all, and building a more socially cohesive country where communities feel proud of their place and empowered to change it”.
Bristol has yet to spend a penny on its bid, with cultural leaders including Anna Rutherford from Design West, writer and performer Edson Burton, Emma Harvey from Trinity and LaToyah McAllister-Jones from St Paul’s Carnival all working pro-bono ahead of the expression of interest deadline on February 8.
DCMS rules means that the expression of interest first needs to come from a local authority, with Bristol City Council’s head of culture, Phil Walker, telling Bristol24/7 that the council “is responding to a great amount of energy, enthusiasm, skill and expertise from around the city”.
Walker said: “It’s Bristol City Council leading the bid but this is very much a collaborative process. It’s about the city council being responsive to what we’re hearing the city wants.”
Following the submission of the expression of interest, it is likely that a community interest company would be set up, similar to the Bristol Green Capital Partnership that supported Bristol’s year as European Green Capital in 2015.
Councillors on the strategy & resources committee will need to approve the expression of interest, and if Bristol is then invited by the DCMS to submit a full bid, a development grant of £60,000 would be available from council coffers.
Island of Foam as part of Bradford’s UK City of Culture year in 2025 – photo: Andrew Benge
“We’re looking at how can this be a real genuine city-led, collaborative city of culture,” said Harvey.
“And when we say that, we mean how can we make sure that’s felt across the city?…
“Bristol is already a city of culture but potentially our ability to engage in that culture and participate in that culture isn’t equitable.”
The main photograph at the top of this page shows Smoosh!, Paraorchestra’s large-scale musical promenade that took place in Knowle West in 2021, a perfect example of using culture as a force for inclusion and opportunity.
A 2017 report from the Runnymede Trust highlighted significant racial inequality in Bristol. Can culture go some way to combatting this?
For Burton, culture needs to create “a place of radical encounter” where we can try to lessen some of those stark inequalities.
“We need help,” said Burton. “Our city needs help and our institutions need help, and culture is a powerful answer to create a new narrative of Bristol and what Bristol will be in the future.”
Bristol becoming UK City of Culture hopes to attract visitors, create jobs and strengthen the city’s cultural infrastructure.
“Most importantly, it would help ensure that culture is accessible to everyone, everywhere in Bristol,” said Walker.
The SS Great Britain was ‘floated’ on 55,000 litres of jelly by artists Bompas & Parr in 2012 – photo: Martin Booth
Bristol City Council arts development manager, Elise Hurcombe, said Bristol24/7’s Bristol Legends “is a total example of how we as a city are saying who we believe in”.
“That’s really exciting. It’s about seeing who we haven’t heard from…
“The key about citizen engagement is that what people ask for isn’t going to be what we expect them to ask for. That’s where the unique personality of Bristol comes out and that’s when it gets fun.
“This is about fun and it’s about joy.”
Main photo: Rose Morelli
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