Durham County Council looks for ‘flagship’ festival to replace Lumiere

The authority has launched a search for an experienced festival producer, cultural organisation or consortium to help develop and deliver what it hopes will become a nationally significant event for County Durham.

Building on the success of festivals including Lumiere, the council says it is seeking a “bold, ambitious and distinctive” concept that could become a permanent fixture in the county’s cultural calendar.

Councillor Karen Allison, the council’s cabinet member for leisure, tourism, regeneration and high street, said: “We have a significant opportunity to create an ambitious, nationally significant cultural event that will shape perceptions of County Durham for years to come.”

The move comes after organisers announced in October 2025 that Lumiere, which transformed Durham with large-scale light installations every two years, would come to an end following its final edition in November that year.

Over its 16-year run, Lumiere attracted more than a million visitors and generated £43 million for the local economy, becoming one of the county’s best-known cultural events.

Now, Durham County Council is looking to create a successor event capable of delivering a similar impact while offering something entirely new.

Cllr Allison said: “The commissioned event should be capable of becoming a defining cultural moment for County Durham: bold in concept, ambitious in scale, participatory in nature and recognised nationally for its originality.

“We are particularly interested in ideas that bring together culture, creativity, technology, innovation, and community participation in ways that are distinctive to County Durham and cannot be replicated elsewhere.”

According to a council procurement site, the authority wants proposals that represent a “step change from traditional festival models” and have the potential to become a recurring event with national recognition.

Organisers are also being asked to create opportunities for local residents, particularly children and young people, to play an active role in shaping and delivering the festival.

The expression of interest period for the new festival remains open until October 8, with the contract expected to begin in February 2027.

When Lumiere’s final edition was announced last year, Artichoke chief executive Helen Marriage said the decision had “not been taken lightly”.

She said: “When we first brought Lumiere to Durham in 2009, we didn’t know if it would work.

“Fifteen years on, Lumiere has become part of Durham’s story.”

At the time, council leader Cllr Andrew Husband stressed that Lumiere’s end would not mark the end of major cultural events in the county.

He said: “This is by no means the end of light art or major events in County Durham.

“This is an opportunity for us to take time to reassess how we present light art in County Durham and explore new ways to fire people’s imaginations and bring communities together.”