Plymouth launches History Festival programme for 2014

The programme for the Plymouth's 2014 History Festival has gone live and already features nearly 100 different events.

The festival will take place from 1-31 May and aims to bring a number of historical events in the city under one banner as well as provide residents and visitors with a focal point for celebrating and discovering Plymouth's unique heritage.f

Local organisations have been busy pulling together and confirming their event details since late 2013 and the full programme can now be found at www.plymhistoryfest.wordpress.com

The festival caters for all ages and interests and events will be held in many different locations, not just in the city centre but also around the Hoe, the Barbican, the Royal William Yard, the Millfields and in many of the suburbs. Venues range from church halls and guildhalls to civic buildings and historic houses.

The festival will kick off with the opening of the city's flagship World War I and Three Towns centenary exhibition, Plymouth's Great War: Three Towns United in Conflict. The show is one of a number of ways in which the city will be commemorating 100 years since the start of the First World War, as well as celebrating 100 years since the three towns of Plymouth, Devonport and East Stonehouse became one, throughout 2014. It will be on display from 1 May-29 November at the City Museum and Art Gallery.

Deputy Council Leader Peter Smith said: “The Plymouth History Festival launched last year and was a great success – bringing many different organisations and societies together under one programme and providing a huge variety of opportunities for people to discover more and learn about the city they live in and come to visit. This year is even more significant, with two big centenaries to remember and many of the festival events will highlight these key moments in history. It’s a huge achievement to go live with such an extensive programme already and I’m sure more events will be added as we get closer to May.”

The History Festival programme also features displays, family-friendly activities, talks, presentations, guided tours and walks and a series of special one-off events. Many are free although a lot of the events require advance booking.

Contact details for all the event venues can be found on the website.

People can also stay up-to-date with festival developments at www.facebook.com/plymhistoryfest and www.twitter.com/plymhistoryfest.

Full details of the World War I commemoration and Three Towns celebrations can be found at www.visitplymouth.co.uk/plymouthremembers.