The real Big Bang

Poet Scarlett Ward leads a poetry workshop in conjunction with About Us and UNBOXED
22 Feb 2022

About Us* is a dazzling free show combining projection mapping, animation, music and poetry. At its heart, says Maggie Aderin-Pocock, is a simple message: we are all connected. 

Welcome to UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK

people looking at an art installation
21 Oct 2021

What happens when creative minds from different sectors and disciplines come together to imagine and design bold, large-scale events to reach millions of people worldwide? Martin Green reveals what’s in store for 2022.

Little moments of joy

Projection on cargo truck
09 Jun 2021

While audiences are most comfortable returning to outdoor events, organising a festival that can flex around ever-changing restrictions is still no mean feat. Penny Mills and Jonathan Goodacre have been looking at what’s working.

Coventry 2021: City of Culture is open for business

Coventry city of culture shop
19 May 2021

Despite all the difficulties of the past year, Jake Bartle and Emily Coleman are confident that this year’s festival will be a celebration of artistic achievement.

Vault Festival closes after funding for new venue falls through

14 Mar 2024

London's Vault Festival of theatre and performance has announced its closure after funding for its new venue fell through.

Growing number of UK music festivals announce cancellations

28 Feb 2024

The Association of Independent Festivals urges government action after at least 10 UK music festivals say they will not go ahead as planned this year due to rising costs. 

Manchester festival commits to supporting grassroots venues

21 Feb 2024

The Music Venue Trust (MVT) has announced an agreement with RADAR Festival for a percentage of every ticket to go towards supporting grassroots music venues via the charity’s Pipeline Investment Fund. 

RADAR Festival, the contemporary indoor music festival in Manchester, is the first festival to agree to donate to the Pipeline Investment Fund which has awarded more than £260,000 to 61 UK Grassroots Music Venues since it was founded in 2022.

Co-organiser Catherine Jackson-Smith said: “If we don’t protect the smaller venues then there isn’t a pipeline for the next [festival] headliners, and this ticking time bomb is something that the music industry can, and must, take action on.” 

MVT CEO and founder Mark Davyd said: “We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to RADAR Festival, for taking this bold step as the first festival to champion the Pipeline Investment Fund. 

"Their support is a strong commitment to the heart and soul of the UK's music scene, nurturing its roots through the vital network of Grassroots Music Venues."

Attendance at Manchester International Festival tops 300,000

07 Feb 2024

Last summer’s Manchester International Festival (MIF23) attracted more than 325,000 visitors to the city, according to a new report.

The report, by Manchester City Council’s Economy and Regeneration Scrutiny Committee, found the amount of money spent by attendees at the ninth edition of the biennial festival totaled £39.2m.

Almost half (47%) of visits to MIF23 were by first-timers to the festivals, compared with 36% in 2019 and 40% in 2021.

A total of 428 volunteers contributed 9,000 volunteer hours during the 18-day event. Meanwhile, 178 artists benefited from a development opportunity at MIF23, and more than 1,164 children were involved in creative activities.

The council’s report also found more than 300,000 visitors have passed through the doors of Manchester’s Aviva Studios since it opened last summer, with almost a third (32%) from Manchester.

Councillor Luthfur Rahman, Manchester City Council Deputy Leader, said 2023 "was without doubt a stand-out year for culture in Manchester and MIF23 had a big part to play in this".

"From visitor spend and audience numbers, to volunteer hours and the number of amazing opportunities for local artists, residents and young people to get involved, together with a world-class programme of new work to see and enjoy, the festival delivers on every front. 

"And now with the opening of Aviva Studios, the country's landmark new building for the arts, it's very clear that Manchester is the cultural place to be."

Edinburgh Fringe: Accommodation boost for performers

Exterior shot of Queen Margaret University
06 Feb 2024

Partnership between Fringe Society and local university forms part of efforts to double number of affordable rooms available to performers for the 2024 festival.

Cultural festival awarded £30k from ACE

24 Jan 2024

A new cultural festival in Broxtrowe, Nottinghamshire, has received £30,000 of Arts Council England (ACE) funding. 

Running throughout June, the festival will offer indoor and outdoor events, including a mix of theatre performances, art workshops, film screenings and live music.

The bid to ACE was made through a Community Committee comprising Broxtowe Borough Council members and officers as well as local people with experience in the culture sector.

Chair of the Community Committee, Councillor Teresa Cullen, said: “This is such a significant amount of funding and such an exciting opportunity for us in Broxtowe. The festival will bring the best of Broxtowe cultural groups and artists to venues across the breadth of the borough. 

“It will also be a really important way for us to break down barriers between areas of our local community, raise awareness of issues like disability and mental health through cultural performances and be accessible for people for all backgrounds."

Can fungi boost festival sustainability?

Crowds around a stage at Glastonbury Festival
24 Jan 2024

An Arts Council England-backed project has been exploring whether mycelium, a material made from the root network of fungi, can be used to construct sustainable temporary structures at festivals.

Fringe festival chiefs call for regular government funding

16 Jan 2024

Leaders of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society say the city’s status as host of a leading cultural festival is in jeopardy unless the Scottish government offers a new funding approach.

Study on future of arts festivals launches 

15 Jan 2024

British Arts Festivals Association (BAFA) will undertake a UK-wide research study to assess the future of arts festivals.

Supported by Arts Council England, Arts Council of Wales and Creative Scotland, BAFA is commissioning BOP Consulting to research issues including sustainability, equality, diversity and access. 

The data will be used to benchmark the sector, quantifying its contribution to the economy and the places festivals serve. BAFA said it hopes the findings will demonstrate the challenges and opportunities for the sector in the wake of Covid and Brexit.  

Fiona Goh, Director of BAFA, said: “There’s never been a more critical time for BAFA to be able to capture the size, scale and impact of this extraordinary range of cultural events in the arts festivals sector, taking place across the UK.  

"This vital research will not only help us understand the scope of work currently happening in the sector, and to pinpoint the impacts of the pandemic and Brexit, but also help us see how festivals are responding to the challenges of sustainability, the cost of living crisis and social justice movements. 

"We’re delighted that investment from three national arts councils will provide the data that we need to support the sector in shaping a better future together.”

Findings from the survey, which can be accessed here, are due to be shared in the autumn.

My Gurus: Culture at its best

Kersten England
11 Jan 2024

With Bradford City of Culture 2025 just one year away, its Chair Kersten England reflects on the people who have helped pave the way in her career.

Edinburgh Deaf Festival 'facing funding crisis'

Chief Exec of Deaf Action Philip Gerrard with Edinburgh Deaf Festival Ambassador Nadia Nadarajah at the 2023 festival launch
11 Dec 2023

Organisers say losing the festival would mean fewer opportunities for deaf artists to fulfil their potential.

UK festivals struggling to book big-name headliners

04 Dec 2023

Festival organisers are struggling to book big names in the UK as they are no longer an appealing destination for headline acts, it has been claimed.

The Observer reports the situation has arisen due to rising costs, increased competition and Brexit. Organisers say US acts, in particular, are proving challenging to tempt over as their financial expectations in a dynamic pricing landscape exceed the £2m fee an A-grade festival headliner in the UK can expect.

“The UK just isn’t an attractive offer at the moment,” says Sacha Lord, co-founder of Parklife Festival and night-time economy adviser for Greater Manchester. “When you’re booking these huge global artists, you’re competing with the rest of the world. It’s really tough out there.”

Audience expectations for high-production-value performances and the rising cost of putting a show together and taking it on the road were also cited as causing problems for both artists and promoters.

There are likewise concerns about increased competition from the proliferation of small-scale festivals in recent years as councils increasingly look to rent out their green spaces.

Lord says these issues have been compounded by Brexit, as previously, UK dates could slot into a European tour. With an increased risk of equipment being held up at the border, Lord said: “If that happens, you’re going to lose your headliners. It’s caused major issues in the industry.” 

Kelly Wood, national organiser for live performance at the Musicians’ Union, added that there aren’t as many acts coming to the UK as factoring in time for travel checks makes it less appealing.

Free festival boosts Birmingham culture and economy

30 Nov 2023

A free outdoor festival held in Birmingham had a positive economic and cultural impact on the city, according to a new report.

Birmingham Festival 23 was held over nine days in Centenary Park this summer to mark the first anniversary of the city hosting the Commonwealth Games.

The event comprised 153 projects and performances from more than 800 artists and saw a footfall of 123,500, with local people making up 85% of the attendees.

Visitors to the festival brought a positive economic impact, the report revealed, as local audiences spent a total of £422,391, while visitors spent £210,616.

The report also found that 80% of attendees felt the the festival made them feel proud of their local area, while 93.9% agreed it was friendly and inclusive. 
 

Vault Festival finds new home

29 Nov 2023

The organisation behind Vault Festival has announced plans to move into a new venue in central London to host its next festival in autumn 2024.

Vault Festival of live performance has taken place at The Vaults, a theatre and creative space beneath London Waterloo station, since 2012. Earlier this year, the venue announced it would no longer host the event, putting its future in doubt.

Vault says its new multi-space venue will be a “thriving artistic hub” located in a vacant space in Zone 1. Due to open in spring 2024, it will host “new creative ventures” in addition to the yearly festival and will be aimed at supporting early-career artists. 

The company is currency fundraising for access equipment in the new space.

Vault Director and Co-Founder Andy George said: “One of our non-negotiables for our new home was ensuring we have step-free access so more people can enjoy the work of our wonderful artists. But we don’t want to stop there. We want to install access tools throughout the building so that artists and audiences who are d/Deaf, deafened or living with sight loss can enjoy everything we and our artists do.”

He added: “We are pumped to have found a new home for VAULT following a challenging few years.”
 

Dartington relocates to Norfolk after 75 years

28 Nov 2023

Dartington Summer School and Festival, held in Devon for 75 years, will move to Norfolk in 2024. 

Attracting hundreds of professional and amateur musicians, the festival has taken place at Dartington Hall near Exeter since 1953, but earlier this month, the estate’s trust said the event was "under review". The trust also announced that Artistic Director Sara Mohr-Pietsch and the summer school team stepped down.

The independent Dartington International Summer School Foundation, which supports the event, has announced it will hold a summer school and festival in July 2024 at Gresham’s School in Holt, Norfolk. 

A spokesperson told the BBC it would provide "a fabulous base... with stunning performance and rehearsal facilities along with relaxing and comfortable residential accommodation for participants, all surrounded by beautiful grounds and woodlands".

Totnes councillor Georgina Allen said: "It’s such a shame to see this go – it has been a big part of the cultural offering of this part of Devon”, adding that she hoped other festivals and events would partner with the trust. 
 

Arnolfini pulls Palestinian film over ‘political activity' concerns

Arnolfini Centre for Contemporary Arts in Bristol, September 2016:
23 Nov 2023

Bristol's Arnolfini gallery said it "could not be confident the event would not stray into political activity", which would be at odds with its remit as a charitable organisation.

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