County Durham has been selected as one of eight on the long-list for City of Culture 2025.
Following Coventry's success, over the summer, Richard Holden had up with the idea of bidding for the City of Culture as a county.
Working with his neighbours Dehenna Davison, MP for Bishop Auckland, and Paul Howell, MP for Sedgefield, Mr Holden launched a campaign to have Durham as the County of Culture. You can follow the whole campaign here.
Today's announcement means County Durham is now one step closer to winning the next award, for 2025.
Commenting, Richard Holden MP said:
“County Durham has a proud cultural history. Paul, Dehenna and I launched the idea of the County of Culture, meeting with DCMS to make sure the bid was properly considered. I’m delighted that we have now made the long-list to host the 2025 award. It is a great positive step for our county and marks the start of a cultural recovery that speaks to the Conservatives’ commitment to levelling up our country and build back better following the global pandemic.”
“All we can do is wait but to be long-listed I hope will show the rest of the country what County Durham has to offer, whether that be the Northern Saints Way that cuts through the Weardale or, following my campaign, the old Durham Light Infantry museum being opened again.”
To hear more about the work that Richard is doing for North West Durham, you can sign up here or input your details in the form on this page.