September news

Portsmouth's Big Screen tunes in to Last Night of the Proms

The strains of Land of Hope and Glory will be heard in Guildhall Square on Saturday when the Big Screen will tune in to the Last Night of the Proms.

The live screening starts at 8pm tomorrow (13 September) and heralds the start of a cultural programme that will be developed by Portsmouth City Council in the run up to the Olympic Games in London in 2012.

The London 2012 cultural programme, known as the Cultural Olympiad will be officially launched across the country on the weekend of 26-28 September. In Portsmouth, the launch will be marked with programme of events including the Caravan Gallery in Guildhall Square, an Art Bus, and a drive-in cinema on Southsea Common on the 27 September. Full details of these events can be found on www.visitportsmouth.co.uk.

As part of the Cultural Olympiad programme, the Leader of Portsmouth City Council, Gerald Vernon-Jackson has written to the BBC to find ways to get the people of Portsmouth directly involved in the rousing Last Night of the Proms celebrations next year.

Councillor Vernon-Jackson said: "This year the Last Night of the Proms will be shown on the Big Screen so passers by will be able to catch some of the pomp and colour live from the Royal Albert Hall. Next year we hope to be able to host our own rousing, colourful celebrations right here in the heart of Portsmouth.”

Date : 12 September 2008