2022 Festival update - Government World Magazine

Martin Green CBE, the mastermind behind the hugely successful Hull UK City of Culture 2017, and the former Head of Ceremonies for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, has been asked by government to develop plans to curate, manage, and promote a UK-wide festival in 2022.

The major nationwide festival, backed by £120 million funding from government, was first announced in 2018. As a UK-wide celebration of our creativity and innovation, the Festival will be designed in collaboration with the devolved administrations to showcase the best of our art, culture, heritage, design and technology sectors.

From early January, Martin and his team will begin working with these sectors across the UK. Over the coming months, he will develop a vision which engages communities across the United Kingdom and ensures the delivery of a world class festival of creativity.

The project will be delivered by a dedicated team established within the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games Organising Committee, led by Green in addition to his role as the Chief Creative Officer of the Games.

Culture Secretary Nicky Morgan said:

The nationwide festival will give us a fantastic opportunity to champion all that is great about the UK. It will be a tremendous showcase for our creativity and innovation, which will not only celebrate our values and identities, but will also help attract new inward business and investment.

Martin Green CBE said:

I am honoured to be asked to lead the Festival. As a passionate believer that art and culture has the power to bring people together, I am immensely proud to be working on the project to showcase and celebrate the cultural dynamism and distinctiveness of the UK.

There are three main aims for the festival that will underpin the planning process:

To bring people together to celebrate our strengths, values and identities, and boost pride throughout communities
To celebrate all four nations’ offer to the world, supporting our brand and helping attract new inward business and investment
To leave a lasting legacy across the UK.

Additional details on the festival will be made available in due course.

Notes to editors:

Martin Green is Birmingham 2022’s chief creative officer. Martin has masterminded some of Britain’s most significant major events including the opening of The 02 in London, the opening ceremony of the 2014 Tour de France Grand Départ in Leeds, and was Head of Ceremonies for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. He was also responsible for the 2012 Olympic Torch Relay that visited Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England, and for the last two years he was the executive producer for the Hogmanay in Edinburgh.

As CEO and Director of Hull UK City of Culture 2017 Martin delivered 365 days of transformative culture for the city to huge acclaim. He is an advisor to the Japan 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Martin is also an inaugural member of the Circle of Cultural Fellows at King’s College London. In 2018 he was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Hull and made CBE in the Queen’s New Year Honours list.