Medway's Year of Celebration
A year of celebration will take place in
2012 to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, the bicentenary of
Dickens birth, 200 years of the Royal Engineers in Medway and the
use of the area as an Olympic and Paralympic training
camp.
In addition to the 28 days of free festivals
and events that Medway hosts annually, such as Fuse, Dickens,
Sweeps and sport, there will be extra celebrations.
The council will also be encouraging street
parties and taking part in the national campaign to light 2,012
beacons, with six being lit in Medway.
The Royal Engineers will mark their
bicentenary, and the 100th anniversary of the Royal Engineers Museum, by
building a new bridge at the
Great Lines, the site of Chatham’s proposed World Heritage
Site.
The platoon will also be hosting a range of
other events including a football match against Gillingham Football
Club, who in 2012 will be celebrating 100 years since changing
their name from New Brompton FC.
The Dickens celebrations will include a
series of events, talks and displays hosted at Eastgate House and
Dickens World in February.
A travelling Dickens Conference, "A Tale of 4
Cities", is taking place in Chatham organised by Canterbury Christ
Church University and the University of Kent.
The Guildhall Museum will hold a Dickens
exhibition and the Royal Engineers are loaning their collection of
first editions.
Medway Park will be used as a pre-games
training camp for the Olympic and Paralympic Games and the Olympic
Torch relay will pass
through the area.
Extra sporting events in the area next year include the
National basketball play-off finals, a national wheelchair rugby
event and the British
Transplant Games, which will be held at Medway Park between the Olympic
and Paralympic Games.
Other events include the permanent lighting of
Rochester Castle, which will happen towards the end of 2012.
Cllr
Rodney Chambers, the Leader of Medway Council, said: “We want 2012
to be a real year for all to remember.
“It is an important time for Medway as it
marks so many significant milestones and we will be organising a
series of fun events for all.
“We aim to hold these for the benefit of all
residents and to encourage more people to travel to Medway.
“The idea is that this would let us showcase
all the superb things Medway has to offer, encourage people to come
here and spend their money with our local businesses and to spread
the word that our area is a great place that is worth visiting
again and again.”
Details on events throughout 2012 will be
posted at http://www.celebratemedway2012.co.uk/.
Please keep checking the site as events will
be updated on there as they are announced.
Back to November
2011 news