Thames Festival
The first festival was held in 1997 and featured a stunning high-wire walk across the River Thames. It has grown over the years to become one of London’s largest annual events. In the words of Adrian Evans, Festival Director, "essentially, we want to provide a celebration for London and its river, a city centre party if you like, one that is free and open to all. We want to close roads and bridges and transform them with culture. We want to educate and transform people's ideas about the river, too. Most of all, we want people not just to be spectators, but to be active participants in this spectacular London event". The 2009 Festival took place on 12th and 13th September and, to mark its centenary, the PLA sponsored a River Pageant to add to all of the other attractions of the event. Promoting the Thames as an arena for all, the Thames Pageant saw river users of all kinds join together in a programme-packed river display. The Pageant ran from the 02 Dome (The Queen Elizabeth II Pier) to Westminster and included users of the river from working tugs and steam tugs to private yachts, fireboats, pleasure boats and two PLA craft - our Marine Services tug "Impulse" and the brand new Harbour Service Launch "Lambeth". The Pageant started at the 02 Dome on Saturday 12th September and pased through the festival site later in the afternoon. Sunday saw yet more river-based activities with a Newcomers Barge Driving Race between Westminster and Tower Bridges, a Thames Waterman's Cutter Race from Westminster Boating Base to Millennium Bridge, another race for Cutters between Lambeth and Millennium Bridges and the Faldo Barge Driving Race from Tower to Westminster Bridges. The Festival ended with a mid-river Firework Display off the South Bank (Oxo Tower) on Sunday. Details of the 2010 Festival will be published on this page nearer the date. In the meantime, please visit the Festival’s website for more information (opens in a new window). |
Described by the Evening Standard as "London’s biggest end-of-summer party", the Mayor's Thames Festival celebrates London's river with open air arts, river events, pyrotechnics, illuminations, street theatre, massed choirs and music.