Lancashire Encounter festival 2022: cultural event in Preston attracted 30,000 visitors to city centre

Lancashire Encounter celebrated life through dance, music, theatre and food, with organisers hailing it their best-ever event.

The action, from Friday to Sunday, centred on Preston with a packed programme of performances for all the family at venues including Preston Bus Station to Winckley Square, UCLan and Preston Covered Market.

The event paid tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II, while also celebrating the wonder of life and the joy of communities coming together during difficult times.

The Saturday was headlined by a dazzling torchlight procession weaving its way from Moor Park to Preston Bus Station, led by SPARK!, a live music, movement and lighting spectacular. This was followed by Lancashire community groups including Preston Mela, Swati Dance Company, Burnley Youth Theatre and UCLAN dance, who performed for the crowds along the route.

Sunday’s action saw families descend on Winckley Square for a picnic while enjoying a variety of entertainment, including a Punch and Judy show, a dance performance by Black Victorians and circus strong lady Strong Enough.

Executive producer Esther Ferry-Kennington was delighted with the weekend and the response from those attending. She said: “We’re really pleased with the audiences we had at all of the events and we believe we had 30,000 people attending over the three days, which is just fantastic.

“A highlight, for me, was the procession, which was visually stunning and everyone really seemed to enjoy. I also absolutely loved Born to Protest at the Flag Market, and all the shows had a great response.

“There was a really good vibe throughout the three days and, for me, it was the best Lancashire Encounter yet.”

During the procession, girls from Preston Girl Guide groups paid tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II by carrying photographs from different eras of her life.

Speaking about taking part, Daisy Wallace, 12, from 48th (St Michaels) Preston Guide Group, said: “It was a really amazing experience to be in the parade and pay tribute to the Queen.” Her friend Charlotte ‘Lottie’ Kenton, 11, added: “It was quite scary though, because there were so many people looking at us.”

Girl Guide section leader Sarah Bramhall, who coordinated the tribute, said: “Everyone across the Girl Guiding movement feels honoured and privileged to have had the late Queen as our patron from 1953 right up until her death.

“This procession has been the perfect way to share our respect and admiration, and I’m happy and proud of the way in which we’ve all come together to make it happen.”

Preston Mela brought 80 people to take part in the procession and proved a hit along the route as they encouraged onlookers to join in with the Bhangra and Bollywood dancing.

Gulab Singh, production manager of the Mela said: “Part of our role is to get engagement from the public and the reception we received was brilliant. We asked people if they’d like to join us dancing so that they felt part of it and it was great to see them enjoying themselves.

“I’m really pleased that the city council dedicated the parade to the remembrance of Queen Elizabeth II. It was such a fitting tribute and all of our dancers and artists were even more pleased to be involved because it meant so much.”

Gulab praised other events going on around the city, including performances in the MET (Mobile Event Tent) and the opening night show, Gamcha: A journey, at the covered market. He said: “The drama and the themes of poverty and a new environment were very well portrayed. I also really enjoyed Winckley Square on the Sunday and it was great that the festival offered lots of different experiences in different parts of Preston.”

Charles Quick, professor of public art practice at UCLAN, who is involved in the MET project, also praised the varied locations. The MET hosted dance performances by groups including Swati Dance Company, Dance Syndrome and JazzSwing Dance, during the weekend.

He said: “The real success story for me was the imaginative use of all the public spaces, from new spaces like the University Square and the new Bus Station square to more established spaces like the Flag Market and Covered Market. It’s the first time we’ve had a city-wide event that’s used all of these different spaces and that’s really quite significant in showing what an asset they are to the city.”

Caroline Heap, creative programmer from The Harris Museum and Art Gallery, was overseeing events at Preston Bus Station, which drew the crowds. She said: “Urban Astronaut was visually stunning and really captured people’s attention, as did circus theatre artist Hold On. We saw people of all ages enjoying the entertainment, especially the finale on the stage, with the choir and the projections on St John’s Shopping Centre.”

Zara Blackburn, creator of wildlife-inspired costumes and carnival pieces, brought George the chameleon along to Lancashire Encounter as part of her act named ‘Make it Wild’.

Zara said: “It’s been amazing to come back and go through all the streets that I know and see people I haven’t seen for a long time.

“It’s been really inspiring to see everybody coming together, across lots of different groups. Everyone’s having a great time.”

The Sunday picnic allowed families to eat together while enjoying hands-on activities. Beth De Nobrega, founder of Preston business Magical Story Jars, held workshops across the Saturday and Sunday designed to help children unleash their creativity.

She said: “It was really good fun and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves, we even had people who’d been to see us on the Saturday coming back to find us on the Sunday, which was fantastic.

“The atmosphere was great with a really unique line-up of entertainment, and I was really proud to be part of it. I think a little bit of happiness is exactly what we all needed.”