FIREWORKS, music and dancing are set to kick off a year of celebrations for Bournemouth’s bicentenary on New Year’s Day.
The Lower Gardens are set to rock to the sounds of Swiss carnival music and gospel choirs, with dancers strutting their stuff on stage before a firework display brings down the curtain on the first day of a year of celebrations.
Cllr Anne Filer, the chairman of the 2010 celebrations, said the free event was set to kick off the town’s 200th anniversary in style.
“The bicentenary celebrations are continuing to gather momentum and I am sure that the launch will set a fantastic precedent for the year,” she said.
“This event provides a great opportunity to get out with the family and enjoy some unique entertainment – all completely free.”
The Gugge Band – a musical group drawing on the Swiss carnival tradition of Guggenmusik – will kick off the event at 3.55pm.
Dance group Shake will take to the stage for their first performance at 4.10pm, returning for a second display at 4.35pm. Bournemouth Community Gospel Choir will also make two appearances, at 4.20pm and 4.45pm.
A firework display will close the event, which will see town mayor Cllr Beryl Baxter cut a commemorative cake.
The celebration is only the first in a growing calendar of events set to mark the town’s foundation by Lewis Tregonwell in 1810.
A “virtual museum” will be launched online in the spring. The 2010 Streets of Bournemouth web site will allow visitors to add their own photographs and memories to a collection developed by Bournemouth University, the Russell-Cotes art gallery, and the town’s libraries.
Visitors to Bournemouth’s beach front and pier will be able to step back in time through five historical zones from 1810 to the present day on April 17.
People hoping to add their own events to the year of celebrations should visit bournemouth2010.org.uk.
Original Story - Daily Echo
