Towns, Cities & Boroughs of Culture

Every City, Town and Borough of Culture journey is different, shaped by the people, places and stories that make each location unique.  

Over many years of creating meaningful work in different locations, we've developed proven ways of working that put people and place at the centre. From the first UK City of Culture in 2013, Derry~Londonderry, where we produced the award-winning The Return of Colmcille and the first Children's Capital of Culture finale event, The Birthday Party! which took place in 2026, to memorable participatory events for Wirral Borough of Culture 2024, Coventry City of Culture 2021 and Hull City of Culture 2017. 

We take the time to research and engage local and regional creative collaborators and production partners, building relationships that last beyond a single project. And we develop a training and development plan to build the capacity of emerging local creatives, performers, and production teams, leaving skills and confidence behind long after the work is done.  

Here are just a few examples where we have produced successful cultural programmes that not only stay in the memory of audiences for long after they happen, but that create lasting legacies in the communities where they happen.

Animating Ashington 

Commissioned by Northumberland County Council, Animating Ashington was a programme of ten events with a further 18 community engagement and participation opportunities, designed to raise awareness and local buy-in for extensive town centre regeneration. At its heart was an extended campaign of resident engagement, including a 'friends of' group of key community gatekeepers who helped shape the programme from the ground up. The result: total attendance exceeded the population of the town. 

Wirral Borough of Culture 

Tasked with developing the programme's highlight events, we produced three days of community performance, puppetry, parade and environmental awareness which drew in 33,000 visitors and engaged more than 520 artists and community members. 

We also delivered a fire-lit concert for an audience of 8,000. Set beneath Luke Jerram's Gaia, the event featured opera performers, social media pop sensations, local musicians and community choirs, closing with a stage pyrotechnic display. 

We marked the grand finale of the borough of culture year, celebrating Marine Lake, its heritage and its wild swimmers with two nights of a fire-breathing dragon and a pyrotechnic display, drawing 19,000 visitors to New Brighton. 

Blyth Celebrates 

Commissioned by Northumberland County Council, we produced three events as part of a year-long cultural programme to energise this coastal North East town. Our People-Powered Rocket led a community parade to open a new cinema in the town square, drawing 12,000 people. The Earth, Wind and Fire Garden delighted audiences in the autumn, working with local arts organisation Headway Arts, who delivered a lantern procession engaging over 11,000 audience members. 

Blyth Festival of Energy 

This four-day festival celebrated the town's creativity, community and pioneering spirit, placing Blyth at the forefront of the UK's renewable energy future. It marked the finale of the Blyth Celebrates programme and acted as a launch pad for the town's own Town of Culture bid. 

The first of its kind, Festival of Energy brought together 212 artists and performers and 195 volunteers, drawing 24,000 people into the town centre, in a town of only 40,000. 

In a world first, the Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult's Blade Testing Hall opened to the public as we presented Luke Jerram's Gaia and Museum of the Moon alongside an 88m wind turbine blade. Britain's first astronaut, Helen Sharman, gave a talk beneath the installations to 350 local school children. We also commissioned seven new artworks to support the town's own creative economy. 

Rotherham Children's Capital of Culture 

Rotherham's year as the world's first Children's Capital of Culture called for a finale worthy of a landmark moment, and we were commissioned as artistic directors to deliver it: a joyful, large-scale Birthday Party developed with and for the children of the borough. 

At its heart stood Charlie, a 30ft baby puppet, brought to life with an original score, projections, pyrotechnics and a Fire Garden. A main stage, programmed by young producers, featured hip hop, tribute and local artists. Central to the work was four months of engagement with children and young people of Rotherham, gathering hopes and dreams through music, oral history and land art. Over 10,000 local children helped shape the event, and more than 6,000 people joined the celebrations. 

• Community and participation 

Community engagement and co-creation; working with families; working with schools, children and young people; volunteer and participant programmes. 

• Festivals and parades 

Programming and full festival delivery; large and small-scale community parades; torch-lit processions. 

• Fire and light 

Fire Gardens; lighting displays and trails; SFX and pyrotechnics. 

• Major events and ceremonies 

Capital, City and Town of Culture full programmes and highlight events; opening ceremonies. 

• Production services 

Full production and event management support; puppet making and parade floats; mechanical structures; props and sets.