Nottingham’s Cultural Partnership* engaged with arts leaders and artists to celebrate Nottingham’s richly diverse literary and artistic communities and heard about the city’s future ambitions from Sandeep Mahal, recently appointed Director of UNESCO City of Literature.
Read Sandeep’s speech in full here.
The packed Thames Pavillon room heard about the alliances being developed, partnerships based on mutual respect and trust. In a fast-moving and unsettled world, we pride ourselves on Nottingham’s culture and creativity; there is so much to celebrate.
Nurturing communities
Our cultural leaders nurture people, create communities that don’t just survive but thrive in today’s world, and support and develop the next generation of leaders and artists. I believe the arts are key to our society and to the kind of world I want to live in. That culture and creativity help in placemaking, and that cultural leaders have a civic duty within their communities.

Tony’s Last Tape
The cultural high-note for the end of Nottingham in Parliament Day was a performance of Tony’s Last Tape – a Nottingham Playhouse production based on the famous political diaries of Tony Benn, one of Britain’s most respected, celebrated and controversial politicians. The play examined the struggle of a man who realises that maybe it is time to withdraw from the fight, to let others take over, but just doesn’t quite know how.
View the photo gallery from Nottingham in Parliament Day.
*Nottingham Cultural Partnership is Broadway Cinema, Dance4, Experience Nottinghamshire, Galleries of Justice, Inspire, New Art Exchange, Nottingham City of Literature, Nottingham City Council, Nottingham Contemporary, Nottingham Creative Quarter, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, Nottingham Playhouse, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham Theatre Royal & Royal Concert Hall, Primary Studios.