Wrexham Makes the City of Culture 2029 Shortlist: What Happens Now?
Four places left, and one of them's us. On Thursday 22 October the government named Blackpool, Milton Keynes, Sheffield and Wrexham as the final four for UK City of Culture 2029, which leaves Wrexham one decision away from becoming the first place in Wales to hold the title.
The final four, and who missed out
Nine places made the longlist earlier this year. Five have now gone: Inverness-Highland, Ipswich, Middlesbrough, Portsmouth and Swindon. Wrexham is the only place left on the shortlist from outside England.
The shortlist was picked by the UK City of Culture expert panel, chaired by Sir Phil Redmond. If that name rings a bell, he's the man who created Hollyoaks, so he knows his way round Chester at least.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy made the announcement, and Welsh Secretary Stephen Kinnock didn't hold back. His line was that Wrexham now has a "real chance to become Wales's first City of Culture". I'll take that.
Second time lucky?
We've been here before. Wrexham bid for 2025 and, in the council's words, "only narrowly missed out". Bradford got it, and by all accounts they made it count, with more than 6,500 events, over 80 per cent of them free.
I think this bid is stronger, and that's not me being a homer. Look at what's changed since the last attempt. The Football Museum of Wales has opened at Wrexham Museum. The Old Library is being turned into a creative hub. Work is going on in the High Street and the indoor markets. The town is building the thing it's bidding to be.
If you want the background on how the bid works, I wrote it all up back in June. This post is about where we are now.
What's at stake
Even if we don't win, Wrexham is guaranteed at least £125,000 to take forward parts of the bid. That's money for the town just for getting this far, and every shortlisted place gets it.
The winner gets a £10 million prize fund. Wrexham Council estimates that winning would be worth more than £200 million to Wrexham.
Council chief executive Alwyn Jones went further. He says winning would be "one of the greatest moments in Wrexham's history". Big claim. Then again, this is a town that's had a pretty decent few years for big moments.
What happens next
The four shortlisted places now finalise their full bids, and the government says the winner will be announced in early 2027.
Wrexham's bid runs under the name Wrecsam2029. It's led by the Wrexham Community and Culture Trust, a charity, with the council backing it. The theme is community, collaboration and creativity, with a good dose of hwyl thrown in. If you're not a Welsh speaker, think of hwyl as that spark of joy you get on a good night out or a big match day.
Bid chair Joanna Knight's message to the town was simple: "Now we need everyone to get behind us". Marcher Vibe is an official ambassador for the bid, and we've backed it since the station launched in January. So you'll be hearing plenty about it from us between now and the result.
You can follow the bid and find ways to get involved at wrecsam2029.wales. If you're in town, the Public Art Trail murals are already up around the city centre and worth a wander.
What would you put in Wrexham's year?
Here's what I want to know. If Wrexham wins, what should 2029 look like? A massive gig at the Racecourse? Something at Erddig? A proper celebration of the Welsh language? Something nobody's thought of yet?
Text MARCHER followed by your idea to 88440, or comment on our Facebook page, and I'll read the best ones out on the Breakfast Show, weekdays from 7am. You can listen online, on the app or on DAB across Wrexham, Chester and Liverpool.