Happy to back the bid
SHETLAND News is happy to “back the bid”.
That bid – for Lerwick to become the UK’s first town of culture in 2028 – is an important one, given it comes with a potential £3 million funding jackpot.
If Lerwick is lucky enough to win the top prize, or a £250,000 runner-up award, we would hope to see the funds used to benefit people far and wide – folk across Shetland of all backgrounds.
For those who may be unaware, Lerwick has been shortlisted to be the UK Government’s town of culture 2028 – with 14 other towns in the running too.
The towns are being invited to conjure up a bid detailing a cultural programme it could host and deliver in 2028, backed by £3 million of government funds.
Locally, the bid is being led by Shetland Arts on behalf of the Shetland Partnership – a group of organisations and agencies such as the SIC, NHS Shetland, the local trusts, emergency services and more.
At the crux of it, is hard not to feel a twinge of excitement about what £3 million could do for culture in Shetland in 2028.
Shetland is already culturally rich; we’ve not long come off the back of the Rising North music festival and more latterly Shetland Wool Week, for example. Meanwhile the Shetland Accordion and Fiddle Festival is about to start.
We recently had the Homemade film screening, and a couple of weekends ago there was the massive Inferno dance show in the Clickimin, while theatre productions are in the works for November and December too. In among all this are art exhibitions, poetry nights, traditional concerts, rock gigs, the ongoing preparations for Up Helly Aa…
We were pleased to hear those involved in the project saying the bid has Shetland at its heart, but with Lerwick being used as the vehicle – much like hosting the Tall Ships Races in the town in the past.
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If the bid did result in a £3 million windfall, hopefully folk in the north, south, east and west of Shetland will be able to tap into the cultural programme – whatever it may entail.
Hopefully it would also not result in the everyday cultural offering diminishing to make room for Lerwick 28 projects.
As such, we’re pleased to see plenty of consultation being done on what Shetland folk want to see in the final bid – although let’s hope it is not just a tick-box exercise.
And let’s hope too that if Lerwick is successful then the impact of the year of culture could extend beyond 2028 and have a lasting legacy.
So for now Shetland News is happy to ‘back the bid’ – but all eyes will be on what ends up in the bid, and, of course, who is announced as the winner come March next year.
In the meantime, folk still have until Friday to complete the survey – which can be found here – to get their voice heard.
Please also watch the latest Sheeks Aboot Shetland podcast to learn more about the campaign:
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