UK City of Culture 2025: Five sites Wrexham hopes will boost its bid

Wrexham is in the running to be named UK City of Culture 2025.

It will compete against Bradford, Stirling, County Durham, Cornwall, Southampton, Derby and Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon for the title.

The longlist will be cut down to a shortlist early next year, before the winner is announced in the spring.

There's a lot of competition on that list, which is allowed to include areas as well as cities, so what can Wrexham offer that the others can't?

"Winning the UK City of Culture competition has a hugely positive impact on an area, driving investment, creating jobs, and highlighting that culture is for everyone," said Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries.

The aim of the competition is to highlight cultural hubs and areas of success outside of London.

So what could be Wrexham's trump cards?

"A masterpiece of creative genius" were UNESCO's words when describing the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct when it was awarded World Heritage Status in 2009.

"It's more than 200 years old, was completed in 1805, and was designed by Thomas Telford and William Jessop," said Lynda Slater of the Trevor Basin Visitor Centre.

The aqueduct is regarded as one of Thomas Telford's greatest civil engineering achievements.

The Grade I listed structure is the longest and tallest aqueduct in the Great Britain.

Visitors can walk or take a canal boat trip across the 38 metre tall structure.

Wrexham FC is the third oldest football club in the world, and its team plays in the oldest active international stadium in the world - that is hard to top when it comes to sporting history.

When the club was founded in 1864, Abraham Lincoln was about to start his second presidential term.

Wales played its first international football match here in 1877.

"Its the heartland of Welsh football," said Colin Henrys of Wrexham FC,

He added that: "The FAW was formed in the town shortly before that first Wales game".

The stadium has hosted more Wales international games (94) than any other, the most recent was in 2019.

In recent years the club has made international headlines after being bought by Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.

"We have people tuning into our radio commentary from Canada, from Australia, from all over the world," Mr Henrys said, due to the impact of the takeover.

Tŷ Pawb is a cultural community centre and arts hub run by Wrexham council, containing independent market stalls, restaurants and art shows.

It is one of the main venues for the Focus Wales festival, one of the UK's most important new music festivals.

15,000 people are expected to attend that festival this weekend, with around 300 new artists performing.

In August the building won the Welsh Architecture Award 2021 from Royal Society of Architects in Wales, adding to the three awards the building won in 2019.

Reacting to the news that Wrexham was being considered for UK City of Culture, Wrexham Council said "a special mention should be given to Tŷ Pawb, which has played a key role in making culture accessible and attractive to everyone in Wrexham".

"Wrexham is a wonderful place full of culture, industry and creativity, and whatever happens, we can look forward to the future with confidence and optimism."

"St Giles' is the largest medieval parish church in Wales, its right in the centre of the town, and in a sense the town grew up around it," said The Vicar of St Giles' Rev Dr Jason Bray.

"Wrexham was the second largest town in Wales and the church reflects that, it was a very prosperous place," he added.

Renovation works undertaken in the late 15th century were probably financed by Lady Margaret Beaufort, mother of King Henry VII.

The church hosts concerts in the town and is another venue for this year's Focus Wales festival.

At the end of this year, 6,000 hand-made angels will be displayed here to remember victims of the Covid pandemic in Wales.

The Stiwt first opened in 1926 in the village of Rhosllanerchrugog.

It was paid for by miners and its bells would wake colliers ahead of their shifts at the Hafod mine.

After the mine closed, the Stiwt remained a centre of social and cultural life in the village until its initial closure in 1977.

It was the only theatre near Wrexham at one time, and was used as a concert hall, cinema, games room, and public library.

After falling into disrepair, the council planned to demolish it but a strong community campaign and lottery funding led to it being reopened in 1999.

It is now a Grade II* listed building and state of the art venue for performing arts and cultural activities.

The winner of the UK City of Culture 2025 will be announced in May 2022.