Harrogate Flying the Flag for the North at UK Sponsorship Awards
Harrogate International Festivals is helping fly the flag for the North having been shortlisted for two awards at the prestigious UK Sponsorship Awards 2024.
The Yorkshire-based arts charity has been shortlisted for the ‘Arts and Cultural Sponsorship’ award and the ‘Sponsorship Continuity’ award, both for its hugely successful partnership with T&R Theakston Limited, which has sponsored the much-loved Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival since 2004.
Harrogate International Festivals, which is up against the likes of the Royal Academy of Arts, English National Opera, Morgan Stanley, Sky Media and Mindshare, is the only organisation from the North of England shortlisted in these two categories.
The Sponsorship awards have been a highlight in the sponsorship calendar for the past 30 years, celebrating some of the best campaigns, projects and events in the country, featuring internationally renowned brands and organisations.
Over the last 20 years, the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival has established itself as a world class celebration of crime fiction, attracting such internationally best-selling authors as P D James, Lee Child, John Grisham, Val McDermid and Harlan Coben, along with fans from across the UK, as well as from Europe, the United States and beyond.
Simon Theakston, Chairman of T&R Theakston Ltd, said: “This unique partnership is incredibly special and it continues to be a privilege to support the world’s best crime writing festival as we have for the past two decades.
“Our collaboration with Harrogate International Festivals has helped put the local area on the global map and enabled us to bring world class culture to a diverse audience, both young and old.
“This partnership has also helped elevate the Theakston brand by providing a truly global platform that means our great beers, especially Old Peculier, are now enjoyed all over the world.”
Sharon Canavar, Chief Executive of Harrogate International Festivals, said: “We are delighted to have been shortlisted for not just one, but two awards. We are a small arts charity but one with big ambitions, and to be nominated alongside such massive brands and organisations is recognition of all the hard work that goes into producing such a successful event.
“We are hugely indebted to Simon Theakston and T&R Theakston Ltd for their unwavering support, and belief in us, Harrogate, and arts and culture in Yorkshire.”
The winners will be announced on March 26 at the UK Sponsorship Awards’ gala dinner at the London Marriott Grosvenor Square.