COVENTRY’S year as the UK City of Culture may have come to an end, but interim figures show it will leave a lasting impact.
The statistics illustrate that more than 1million people watched over 700 events either live or online.
Early analysis shows 389,705 tickets were issued for live events, while a further 136,916 attended unticketed gatherings.
Attracting an online audience was crucial due to the impact of the pandemic, and it’s estimated more than 516,000 people viewed events created by the City of Culture Trust virtually, while online event promotions were seen by 333,676 unique viewers.
These results exclude the Public Art programme, participation and workshop activity figures and the creative programme, which was funded by the Trust but delivered by its partners.
More than £172million of direct investment has been secured by Coventry to support the events programme, the Trust’s activities and an upgrade of the city’s cultural assets.
In total, 709 events took place which featured professional artists and creatives working alongside the community with highlights including Our Wilder Family, the UK’s longest-ever drone show – that attracted 27,000 people.
Last weekend’s roaring finale, the BBC Radio 1 Big Weekend, attracted 88,000 spectators.
The ‘City Hosts’ scheme saw 1,515 local people trained as volunteers and they worked for a combined 35,913 hours.
David Burbidge CBE DL, Chair of Coventry City of Culture Trust, said: “As Chair of Coventry City of Culture Trust, I want to thank the trust’s partners and funders, and the generous donors from the business community that enabled such a success.
“A huge amount has been achieved from the bidding process through to delivery and, from the very outset, we’ve pursued strong community engagement ideals to secure long-term, lasting change for our city.
“A full evaluation is now under way as the trust continues its commitment to Coventry with a refreshed ‘Green Futures’ focus.
“I also offer my sincerest thanks to the trust team and the very best of luck to whichever of the candidate cities wins the City of Culture title for 2025.”
Coventry will be passing the ‘UK City of Culture baton’ to Bradford – it will have its year in 2025.
