15/07/2010

Derry~Londonderry has made history today after winning its bid to be the first ever UK City of Culture in 2013. At 7:30pm today, it was announced that Northern Ireland’s maiden city had won the judging panel’s vote, over the three other shortlisted cities Birmingham, Norwich and Sheffield to take the prestigious title.

The momentous win means that in 2013 Derry~Londonderry will play host to a year-long celebration of culture in the city, opening its doors to visitors from across the world. It is anticipated that people will come in their thousands to experience the cultural life that has been at Derry’s heart for generations.

The City of Culture bid proposes a programme of joyous celebration and purposeful inquiry with an ambitious cultural programme leading up to and including 2013. The year will open with a spectacular Sons and Daughters event, a contemporary music and dance festival, an international festival of contemporary visual art events, cultural embassies programme, verbal arts programmes, and an outdoor water based spectacular pageant on the River Foyle celebrating the return of Colmcille. The final cultural programme will be finalised by November 2011. Cultural Champions including Seamus Heaney and Feargal Sharkey will help bring culture to every citizen in the City and to a wider international audience.

The team behind the successful UK City of Culture 2013 bid has described the wave of euphoria across the city following this outstanding achievement is just the beginning in the telling of a new story for the region.

Mayor of Derry, Cllr Colum Eastwood, says that the city’s success will have a massive impact on the people and economy of the city and paid tribute to everyone who played a part in the winning campaign.

“As First Citizen I am privileged to be in a position where I have had an insight into the massive amount of work that has gone into this successful bid. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the agencies, organisations and individuals from our cultural champions to our citizens who have helped with the bid. No job has been too big. No request has been denied. No task too great or too small. In keeping with the message of our bid, whenever anyone was asked for their assistance, they ‘Just Said Yes” across the city, the region and beyond.”

There are four core programmes within the city’s ambitious 2013 programme which aim to deliver significant change: Unlocking Creativity focusing on children and young people, Digital Dialogue as the UK Digital Cultural Champion, Creative Connections offering an international cultural programme of events, and Telling a New Story which will create a cultural platform to explore issues of identity. The city’s promise for 2013 is to connect and reconnect people through culture.

Town Clerk and Chief Executive of Derry City Council, Valerie Watts, said: “This is a tremendous day for the City. We have been given a once in a lifetime chance not only to share our innate talent, creativity and energy with the rest of the world, but also to transform this region forever. This is a new chapter in our journey from plantation to peace, and its legacy will last for generations. We hoped that the judging panel would understand our bold ambition and passion to tell a new story.”

There is no doubt that the city is on the cusp of change with a new emerging confidence and belief in its ability to transform. Aideen McGinley, Chief Executive of Ilex Urban Regeneration Company, explained.

“We are privileged to have been selected for this honour which will be truly transformational as we finalise our regeneration plans. It will give the people of the city who have been inspirational in their support and creativity, the confidence to move forward and seize the opportunity we now have. We look forward also to working with the other cities and all our partners.”

Derry-Londonderry has plans to invest more than £200m in its infrastructure to create a national cultural treasure at Ebrington and pursue World Heritage Status for the City Walls. The year of culture will ultimately create over 3,000 jobs, double visitor numbers and reach out to communities across Northern Ireland, the UK, RoI and the nine million Diaspora worldwide.

In a live video link from Washington, Declan Kelly, US Economic Envoy, congratulated the city:

“Winning the title UK City of Culture 2013 is a tremendous achievement for the city of Derry~Londonderry and for Northern Ireland as a whole. I would like to congratulate Aideen McGinley, Valerie Watts and the rest of the bid team for the months of hard work and dedication they put into making this victory possible. I would also like to commend First Minister Robinson, deputy First Minister McGuinness, Mayor Eastwood and countless supporters from around the globe. It has been a pleasure to be a part of the effort over the last six months to bring this prize home and I am delighted that all the hard work we did together has borne this wonderful result.”

Ends

For further information please contact Clare Richardson on 07974 161 138 or the City of Culture Press Office at 028 71 37 6504

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