Belfast International Arts Festival, formerly known as Belfast Festival at Queen's, claims to be the city's longest running international arts event. Originally established in 1962, it was hosted by Queen's University until 2015, after which a new independent organisation (a company limited by guarantee and registered as a charity) was formed. The event covers theatre, dance, classical and roots music, visual, film and digital arts and literature accompanied by outreach and education events. It takes place every October in venues and locations across Belfast. The most recent event took place between 16 October and 26 November 2024.

History

Held annually, usually in October/November, the festival was founded by student Michael Emmerson in 1962. Emmerson was succeeded as Director by Michael Barnes. From small beginnings the festival grew through the 1960s and 1970s, expanding to a two-week-long event. Performers during this time included

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...

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Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier ( ; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director. He and his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud made up a trio of male actors who dominated the British stage of the m ...

Rowan Atkinson Rowan Sebastian Atkinson (born 6 January 1955) is an English actor, comedian and writer. He played the title roles in the sitcoms ''Blackadder'' (1983–1989) and '' Mr. Bean'' (1990–1995), and in the film series '' Johnny English'' (2003– ...

and

Billy Connolly Sir William Connolly (born 24 November 1942) is a Scottish actor, musician, television presenter, artist and retired stand-up comedian. He is sometimes known by the Scots nickname the Big Yin ("the Big One"). Known for his idiosyncratic and of ...

. The festival is held at several venues across the city, including The MAC, Ulster Hall, the Naughton Gallery, the

Queen's Film Theatre The Queen's Film Theatre or QFT is an independent cinema at Queen's University Belfast, Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It ...

, the Brian Friel Theatre and the Whitla Hall at Queen's, as well as the Grand Opera House, the

Waterfront Hall Belfast Waterfront is a multi-purpose conference and entertainment centre, in Belfast, Northern Ireland, designed by local architects' firm Robinson McIlwaine. The hall is located in Lanyon Place, the flagship development of the Laganside Corp ...

and An Chultúrlann arts centre.

Funding crisis

In January 2007, sufficient funding was not in place to ensure that the 2007 festival would go ahead, and the university launched a 'Save Belfast Festival' campaign, encouraging people to petition

Maria Eagle Maria Eagle (born 17 February 1961) is a British Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Liverpool Garston, previously Garston and Halewood, since 1997 Unit ...

MP, then minister responsible for cultural activities in Northern Ireland. The campaign received support from the

Belfast Telegraph The ''Belfast Telegraph'' is a daily newspaper published in Belfast, Northern Ireland, by Independent News & Media, which also publishes the Irish Independent, the Sunday Independent and various other newspapers and magazines in Ireland. Its e ...

and celebrities including

Patrick Kielty Patrick Kielty (born 31 January 1971) is a comedian, presenter and actor from Northern Ireland. He is the host of '' The Late Late Show'' on RTÉ One and presents a Saturday morning programme on BBC Radio 5 Live. His television credits include ...

. On 16 February 2007 the Minister announced a £150,000 one-off payment to the Belfast Festival at Queen's, although the campaign to raise more funds continued throughout the year. The university subsequently announced that the 2007 festival would go ahead, albeit on a reduced scale, but that work is still required to secure its long-term future.

Sponsorship

This funding came to an end in 2016 when the Ulster Bank announced its withdrawal from the funding of the much-diminished festival.

References

External links

Official WebsiteSave Belfast Festival
{{DEFAULTSORT:Belfast Festival at Queen's Arts festivals in Northern Ireland Music festivals in Northern Ireland Queen's University Belfast Theatre in Northern Ireland Festivals in Belfast 1962 establishments in Northern Ireland Music festivals established in 1962 Annual events in Northern Ireland Autumn in Northern Ireland

History

Funding crisis

Sponsorship

See also

References

External links