North Shields Town of Culture bid

The UK Town of Culture is a new national competition launched by the Government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to celebrate the unique heritage, creativity, and identity of towns across the UK.

The winning town will be crowned UK Town of Culture 2028 and receive £3 million to deliver cultural events and activities. Two runners-up will each receive £250,000.

The first hurdle is to get shortlisted, and to do that we need to submit an Expression of Interest by 31 March 2026. If we make that, we’ll receive a £60,000 grant to help develop our final application.

We’ve got an incredible story to tell, one that goes back hundreds of years, but we’re always writing the next chapter.

2025 marked the town’s 800th birthday and was a year of celebrations, highlighting the heritage and the culture of the town.

Headstand Mike spent much of the year upside down, a limited edition Viz boasting Sam Fender’s Spot the Bin competition flew off the shelves, boats were blessed as they paraded along the River Tyne, the Fish Market became a home for dance and theatre, a social club became an internationally recognised venue for dance music, a local DJ dressed as a nanna and drove a sleigh through the Tyne Tunnel at Christmas, an empty shop became a pop-up cinema, an animated story of the town was projected onto the Registrar’s building and thousands of people turned out for a colourful end of year parade.

The walls of North Shields came to life with giant murals, painted by local and international artists, with Dutch artist Nina Valkhoff’s work ‘The Chase’ being nominated for Mural of the Year in the Street Art Cities Awards.  The murals and sculptures, including Mary Ann Macham who escaped slavery and made North Shields her home, and Our Woven Voices which over 800 young people got involved with, are now part of a popular walking trail.

For International Women’s Day, the legacy of Norah Balls, a prominent North Shields suffragette and community activist, was honoured by Workie Ticket Theatre Co. Their powerful new play Deeds, Words and Danger, inspired by 800 years of North Shields women: from medieval lay sisters and suffragettes to wartime heroines, boxers, carers and teenagers growing up today, will be performed this March.

William Harbutt, the inventor of plasticine, a material that changed the art world, inspired a replica of Hawkey's Lane Lido in Kitty McKay’s exhibition at Globe Gallery.

Dozens of writers helped the print and online phenomenon ‘I Love North Shields’ burst with stories and local pride.

The Priory and Castle that gave birth to the shiels (fishermen’s huts) the town was named after welcomed thousands of people to enjoy shows from Elbow and Ministry of Sound Classical alongside a huge community parade and street theatre.

Sam Fender’s album People Watching hit number one, later winning the Mercury Prize just up the road in Newcastle. Patrick Topping, Ben Hemsley, Schak and Man Power DJ’d around the world.

Music is the lifeblood of North Shields with established and emerging artists taking to the stage at Three Tanner’s Bank, The Engine Room, Salt Market Social, The Exchange 1856, RED, Low Lights and more. A Stone Throw's Festival is a unique event linking multiple independent venues across the town by double decker bus to showcase the latest local and national talent.

The town is a welcoming visitor destination and an international gateway to North East England and beyond. Passengers on the daily ferry service from Amsterdam and dozens of cruise ships from around the world pass the Fish Quay, the biggest prawn landing port in England, on their way to the Port of Tyne.

North Shields Cultural Quarter was established in 2024 and quickly became a creative hub in the heart of the town. Its job is to support creative businesses and professional artists to grow and thrive here. Helix Arts work all year round to use art for social change and to make life better, particularly for our young people.

Clearly, we’ve got a lot to shout about, and we haven’t even mentioned Tom Hadaway, Stan Laurel, Hilton Valentine, Robert Westall, Lena Ashwell, Susan Mary Auld and Alan Young – the voice of Disney’s Scrooge McDuck for over 40 years! Their incredible legacy is paving the way for North Shields’ Town of Culture bid.

The town has a fascinating past and an exciting future. There’ll be a chance to have your say, be part of it and to help back the bid soon.