COVENTRY’S race to be crowned UK City of Culture is hotting up, after its rivals for the 2021 title were officially released.
The Coventry City of Culture Trust registered the city’s interest in bidding to the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DMCS) in February following more than a year’s work in preparing the ground for a bid.
A deadline of February 28 was set for cities to register their interest in the bid, with Hereford, Paisley, Perth, Portsmouth, St Davids, Stoke, Sunderland, Swansea, Warrington and Wells all confirmed as starters.
An initial bid must now be submitted by April 28 before shortlisting takes place in May/June of this year – final submissions will be required from shortlisted cities by September 29.
The final decision on who is UK City of Culture 2021 will be announced in December.
Laura McMillan, manager of the Coventry City of Culture Trust, said registering the city’s interest proved another major checkpoint in the bid process.
She said: “We are now less than two months away from having to submit our initial bid.
“We’ve known who the competition would be for some time and there are some great cities, all with very different stories to tell and we wish them all the very best of luck.
“But we believe we have a very strong story and see this as a huge opportunity to tell that to the world.
“The process so far has revealed some of the great things already going on in Coventry – some of that culture is underground and is not widely known about and the bid alone has started to bring some of that to the fore.”
Laura believes the bid process has highlighted the city’s history of invention as well as reinvention as well as Coventry’s ability to move people – be it by cycle, car or jet engine.
She added: “In the wider context of the world and within the current climate, we have seen the human side of Coventry – we are not only a city of culture but a city of cultures.
“We also have to be very honest about who we are and where the city is positioned.
“Our research has revealed some of the social challenges we have as a city and, also, where we are as a cultural destination.
“Being UK City of Culture in 2021 would be a massive boost for Coventry and many of our programme ideas are based around the communities of the city and how the title would leave a lasting legacy for our people and our different areas.”
