Stockport named Greater Manchester’s town of culture 2023

Stockport has been named Greater Manchester’s town of culture 2023 after securing £50,000 to support arts and creativity in the borough.

Local stars turned out including Stockport band the Blossoms and Stockport County’s Macauley Southam-Hales. 

They joined the Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham, Stockport Council Leader Cllr Mark Hunter, and a number of representatives from across the town’s cultural scene for the announcement at the Hat Works on Tuesday May 23rd.

The town’s bid was centred around the One Stockport vision to support the local economy, connect communities and promote health and wellbeing. Mayor Andy Burnham said ‘there’s a real buzz about the place at the moment’.

It will be underpinned by four elements that celebrate arts and creativity in the broadest sense, as well as the town’s diverse cultural heritage: Stockport Makes, Stockport Moves, Stockport Sounds and Stockport Tastes.

Stockport’s year as Town of Culture coincides with a number of major public redevelopments and investment in the town, including the Town Centre West regeneration, the refurbishment of the iconic Hat Works museum, cutting edge digital arts opportunities to be opened up through the £2.6m Stockport Creative Campus Cultural Fund, and the development of the £14m Future High Street Stockroom discovery centre.

In recent years, Stockport has been widely celebrated as an emerging hub of creative activity in Greater Manchester, and last year was dubbed the ‘new Berlin’ by DJ Luke Unabomber.

The town boasts a rich cultural history, and is home to Strawberry Studios — which saw artists including Joy Division, The Smiths, The Stone Roses, and Paul McCartney record there.

It’s also home to several historically important public buildings, such as the Edwardian Central Library, and its Town Hall — a popular filming location for several primetime TV shows.

Taking to the floor at Stockport’s Hat Works, Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham said: “It’s a real pleasure to be able to announce Stockport as our third ever Town of Culture for 2023.

“The town put forward a strong case for the accolade, backed up by some really exciting plans for events and activities that celebrate Stockport’s identity, its history, but also shine a spotlight on everything that’s happening right now.

“I think the fact that we’ve got Blossoms coming out to support us today just goes to show the talent that is coming out of this place and the pride they have in their hometown.

 I’m pleased to see so many cultural organisations and community groups already engaging with the Town of Culture project, because they’re the ones that will really bring this together.

“There’s a real buzz about the place at the moment – the regeneration taking place through the Mayoral Development Corporation is transforming the town centre, and now this recognition and the funding that comes with it will help Stockport capitalise on all of that.”

Council leader Mark Hunter said the town had a ‘rich cultural history’ and he was delighted it was being ‘recognised in this way.

Cllr Neil Emmott, Greater Manchester’s Lead for Culture, said: the title is about ‘celebrating the unique heritage and exciting potential of places across Greater Manchester’. As well as helping ‘people to engage with culture in new and innovative ways’.

The town follows in the footsteps of Stalybridge, which held the title in 2022, and Bury, which was announced as Greater Manchester’s inaugural Town of Culture for 2020 and held the title through 2021 after the coronavirus pandemic put a number of events and activities on hold.

Stockport’s Town of Culture Programme will be announced throughout the year as the programme is developed with residents, local artists, creative businesses and partners.