The Story of Town of Culture

This week we announced the 2025 Town of Culture. The two people instrumental in its creation, our CEO David Lockwood and General Manager Rosanna Sloan, reflect on the intentions behind this new initiative.

How it Began

As we drove from Shaftesbury to Portland, Verwood to Lyme Regis, we noticed how culturally rich the county is. We passed artists’ studios, hidden theatres on terraced streets, rural libraries full of stories, and village halls playing host to music, comedy and more. Scratch beneath the surface and you find creatives in every small town, developing their craft and engaging their community.

 What you also notice is how different each place is. Sherborne and Weymouth may share a county, but in many ways, they’re as different as Bridport and Birmingham. And it’s this difference - this hyperlocal distinctiveness - that has been a joy to discover as we’ve toured Dorset.

 So, when we’ve been thinking about how to celebrate the cultural identity of Dorset, we’ve been a little torn. Do we choose one month of the year and encourage activity in every place? Do we work collectively and apply for our county to be the UK’s City of Culture in 2029? Or is there something in the diversity of our towns and villages which can be celebrated? And perhaps, also, a unity in that diversity?

These were the questions we asked as we slowly developed the concept for Dorset Town of Culture. 

Image: Parklife Festival in Lyme Regis by Jo Burlington.

Town of Culture

Working with our brilliant colleagues and Dorset Council, and with encouragement and support from Dorset Association of Parish and Town Councils, we’ve created an annual opportunity. For the next few years, Dorset’s towns (and villages) have the opportunity to put themselves forward to be our Town of Culture. We want them to build on the excellent cultural activity already happening in their town, adding colour and spice, and deepening relationships with their communities. We want to foster a spirit of collaboration, that by working together you can create something greater than the sum of the parts, and to ensure a legacy of rich and diverse culture across the county.

Bridport 2024

We’re delighted that Bridport will pilot the concept for the last six months of 2024. And for 2025, we shortlisted two exceptional proposals from Sherborne and, jointly, from Portland and Weymouth. Both pulled together plans that celebrate their local distinctiveness, engage quality creatives and community organisations, and are exciting and ambitious. 

Images: The Portrait Challenge at Bridport Arts Centre, in partnership with the Lyric Theatre, by Michael Armstrong.

Town of Culture 2025

And, after long deliberation, we’re delighted to announce that Portland & Weymouth will be joint Dorset Towns of Culture 2025.

This summer and autumn, we’ll celebrate Bridport’s cultural identity. Next year, we’ll shine a light on Portland & Weymouth. And the following year, it’ll be somewhere else’s turn. And on, we hope, forever more, each year celebrating the individual quality that collectively makes Dorset a County of Culture.

Image: Keep Portland Weird Parade at b-side Festival 2023, by Pete Millson

Read the full press release for Portland and Weymouth Town of Culture here