Derby, the birthplace of the industrial revolution and the site of the world’s first factory, is bidding to become UK City of Culture 2025.
The cornerstone of the bid will be “culture-led regeneration”. City council leader Chris Poulter said, “the city is at a turning point and this is an opportunity for Derby to come together with a collective focus like never before.
“The City of Culture offers a monumental opportunity for Derby to level up, to inspire local pride and attract new investment and tourism.”
Councillor Poulter said Derby had strong plans to enhance culture in the city. A new, 3,500-capacity, £45 million venue is to be built by 2024 and the site of the Assembly Rooms—closed since a major fire in 2014—is to be redeveloped.
“We’re not suggesting that Derby bids as ‘the best cultural city’ in the UK; we’re bidding as a city of aspiration and a city of potential which we know Derby will be able to get behind.”
Sarah Brigham, artistic director and chief executive of Derby Theatre, said, “Derby is a city of the old and the new, from our proud manufacturing history to our place as a diverse and inclusive city at the digital forefront of the UK.
“Our bid for City of Culture will pay tribute to our past but look with excitement and passion to our present and to our future. It will provide opportunities to young and old alike not only to engage with culture but to create, thrive and develop it.”
Others bidding to become UK City of Culture 2025 include Southampton, Bradford, Chelmsford, Medway, Cornwall, Conwy, Armagh and Inverclyde. The winning bid will be announced in December.
Lancashire was aiming to become the first county to clinch the title but withdrew its bid after the council said underwriting the proposal by up to £22 million was "too great a financial risk".