Latest news with #NorfolkandNorwichFestival
BBC News
07-03-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Lowestoft Benjamin Britten statue to be 'unveiled this year'
A statue of Benjamin Britten as a boy "is in the factory being cast" and is expected to be "unveiled this year" after a fundraising life-size bronze sculpture will be installed near the seafront in the Oscar-winning composer's hometown of Lowestoft, Suffolk, after £110,000 was by Ian Rank-Broadley, it will be placed opposite 21 Kirkley Cliff Road, where Britten was born on 22 November Soanes, vice chairman of the project, said he hoped the piece would act as an inspiration for many young people in the town. "The focus of it, and making it about him as a child, is to make children in the area realise they can achieve their ambitions too," the broadcaster and author told BBC Suffolk."When he was 14 his mother took him to the Norfolk and Norwich Festival where his talent was spotted."So, our idea of depicting him at that point is to really inspire children that whatever you want, if you work hard, it is achievable." 'A wonderful thing' The musician, who died in 1976, was previously described as a "genius" by the man tasked with bringing his likeness to life, sculptor Mr it would also not be possible without the "fantastic team of passionate people from the community" behind the Britten as a Boy project, said Mr Soanes."It has been a four-year process and a lot of hard work from [people] who have been pulling it all together," added the 48-year-old, from Lowestoft."The statue is now in the factory being cast as we speak and will be unveiled this year and installed in the next few months."We don't know exactly when, but it will be there this year. It will be a wonderful thing." Follow Suffolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
BBC News
14-02-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Norfolk and Norwich Festival venue to open later despite objections
A festival has been given permission to keep one of its venues open later despite objections. Norfolk and Norwich Festival organisers applied for a license to allow outdoor entertainment up until 23:00 GMT in its 'Spiegeltent' in Chapelfield Gardens. The venue had received noise complaints in the past from neighbours. At a Norwich City Council licensing committee meeting on Tuesday, the authority agreed to the later hours but asked organisers to monitor noise levels and share any complaints it received. The festival, which dates back hundreds of years, featured an array of shows and performances at venues across the city during a two-week run. Some of the festival's most popular shows were hosted at the huge Spiegeltent in Chapelfield Gardens. Not all locals welcomed the later hours and some said "considerable" noise was already generated at the event. William Oxley, who lives in St Giles Street, said: "This is unnerving for residents and makes life unpleasant in the evenings."I have complained on several occasions in the past to local councillors about noise on one-off events - which is bad enough. But this is too much." Council officers recommended that new noise enforcement measures should be brought in to ensure sound levels do not impact organisers believed their current methods worked well and said the proposed changes would be too expensive. Daniel Brine, director of the festival, said: "Like all charities, we count every penny."Far from being a threat and a nuisance, we see ourselves as an asset to the city."Organisers told the council they would continue to monitor noise levels and share any complaints received. This year's Norfolk and Norwich festival will run from the 9 May to 25 May. Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
