Establishment In January 2009, it was announced that then Culture Secretary
Andy Burnham was considering establishing a British City of Culture prize and that the winning city might possibly host events such as the
Turner Prize,
Brit Awards,
Man Booker Prize and the
Stirling Prize.
Phil Redmond was invited to chair a panel set up to consider the proposal, with a remit including deciding how often the prize should be awarded. A working group was established in March and reported in June 2009, suggesting that the designation be given to a city once every four years starting in 2013. The working group stated in its report that the same calendar of events, such as hosting the Brit Awards, should not be staged by each designated City of Culture. Rather, they suggested that the events held in the city should be decided on a case-by-case basis. The report lists possible core events, including those run by the
BBC,
Sony, the
Poetry Book Society, the
UK Film Council, the
Tate,
VisitEngland,
VisitBritain, the
Museums Association, the
Heritage Lottery Fund,
English Heritage,
Channel 4 and the
Arts Council England. A total of 14 cities applied, with four (
Birmingham,
Derry,
Norwich and
Sheffield) shortlisted. At a special televised ceremony in
Liverpool on 15 July 2010, Culture Minister
Ed Vaizey announced that
Derry would be the first ever UK City of Culture. The festival was spearheaded by Culture Company 2013 and they branded the city as "Derry~Londonderry".
Hull 2017 After 2013, the next UK City of Culture was scheduled for 2017. Officials from
Aberdeen stated they would bid for the title, as did officials from
Dundee, while local officials from
Colchester,
Derby,
Leicester,
Plymouth,
Stoke-on-Trent,
Swansea,
Hull, and
York suggested that those cities would bid for the 2017 title. On 18 April 2013, the Hampshire Chamber of Commerce announced that
Portsmouth and
Southampton were making a joint bid for the 2017 title. There was also a bid from East
Kent (Canterbury, Ashford, Folkestone, Dover and Thanet), and another from
Hastings and
Bexhill-on-Sea, supported by celebrity
Graham Norton. In June 2013 the shortlist of four bids from
Dundee,
Hull,
Leicester and
Swansea Bay was announced. The winner of the 2017 title was announced on 20 November 2013 and Hull was chosen.
Coventry 2021 Swansea,
Paisley,
Stoke-on-Trent,
Coventry and
Sunderland were all shortlisted to be the third UK City of Culture. Coventry's win was announced by arts minister
John Glen in
Hull and broadcast live on
The One Show on 7 December 2017. Glen said it was "an incredible opportunity for Coventry to boost investment in the local economy, grow tourism and put arts and culture centre stage". In July 2020 it was announced that the start of Coventry's year as City of Culture had been put back to May 2021 because of the
COVID-19 pandemic. The city has received more than £15.5 million in support from the UK Government to support the annual festivities, with a further £100 million raised in capital investment for the city to support city cultural projects such as
Herbert Art Gallery and Museum,
Coventry Cathedral and
Belgrade Theatre.
Bradford 2025 On 31 May 2022,
Bradford was announced as the 2025 holder of the title, with the three runners-up receiving £125,000. The
bidding contest was conducted between 2021 and 2022. A record twenty bids were submitted from various cities and regions across the UK. On 8 October 2021, eight bids were longlisted, them being;
Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon, Bradford,
Cornwall,
County Durham,
Derby,
Southampton,
Stirling, and
Wrexham County Borough. On 18 March 2022 this was shortened to just Bradford, Durham, Southampton and Wrexham. The other failed bids include;
Bangor,
Borderlands,
Conwy,
Lancashire,
Medway,
Newport,
Powys,
Tay Cities (also including
Fife),
Torbay and
Exeter,
Wakefield,
Wolverhampton, and
Great Yarmouth &
East Suffolk.
Cambridgeshire and Peterborough and
Plymouth had both expressed interest in bids, but were not included in the applicant list. Bids from
Northampton,
Norwich, the
Tees Valley,
Luton, and
Gloucester were withdrawn or ruled out before the final application deadline. The holder was originally set to be announced in December 2021, but was postponed due to the number of applicants, with a longlist released on 8 October 2021. The final application deadline was on 26 January 2022 with the shortlist of four bidding places released on 18 March 2022 (with visits to the shortlisted places conducted in Spring 2022), and the 2025 holder Bradford was announced on 31 May 2022 live on
The One Show.
2029 The bidding contest for the 2029 title is being conducted between 2025 and 2026.
Blackpool,
Bristol,
Exeter,
Ipswich,
Plymouth,
Portsmouth,
Swindon, and
Wrexham all declared intentions to bid. Following the deadline for expressions of interest on 8 February 2026, a longlist of nine places was announced in March 2026, The places included on the longlist announced in March 2026 were
Blackpool,
Inverness–Highlands,
Ipswich,
Middlesbrough,
Milton Keynes,
Portsmouth,
Sheffield,
Swindon,
Wrexham. ==List of UK Cities of Culture==