A new North Belfast festival set to take place in February hopes to share the culture and heritage of the area.
A spotlight will shine on North Belfast as part of 'Look North!' from February 25-27.
Over the course of the weekend, a large number of activities will take place in a number of the most historically significant venues in this part of the city.
Many of these buildings form part of the North Belfast Heritage Cluster, whose goal is to use these vital assets to help deliver heritage-led regeneration through the Great Place North Belfast project, funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Belfast Charitable Society.
The Cluster is delighted to showcase some of these historically significant buildings at three specially curated festival events.
Paula Reynolds, CEO of Clifton House and spokesperson for Great Place North Belfast said: "In planning these events, as part of the wider Look North festival, we wanted to give everyone the opportunity to experience and be inspired by culture and heritage, and more importantly to have their say in what north Belfast’s future should look like.
"We feel that this part of the city has reached a critical junction.
"With the opening of the new Ulster University campus we can now influence how students integrate with the local community and our rich heritage, offering up so many opportunities for change and development."
Events will kick off on Friday, February 25 with ‘Bricks, Spires and Mortals’ delivered by the renowned local historian Dr Eamonn Phoenix - it will look back at the history that surrounds these landmarks in North Belfast, and how they were significant in the development of the city.
The next day, the Cluster will host ‘6 X 6’, a unique event that will integrate audio and video footage of six of the buildings and interviews from people closely linked to them, telling stories of their recent past.
This event will have a particular focus on the Troubles, and how the buildings will play a crucial role in transforming North Belfast. Representatives from each of the six buildings will then answer questions from the audience, allowing more of the stories to be told.
The festival finale event on February 27, will then focus on the future of this unique area.
Panel members, Paul Sweeney, Mark Hackett, Paula Reynolds and Duncan Morrow will discuss how North Belfast’s unique heritage assets can be used as a catalyst for regeneration; how heritage, the local community and now the large university can be harnessed in order to create a vibrant space and most importantly act as a gateway into the rest of Belfast.
For the full Look North festival programme, visit northbelfastfestival.com
