Placemaking at its best as thousands visit MediaCity’s We Invented the Weekend Festival

This weekend, four years after MediaCity’s Place Director, Josie Cahill , had a kernel of an idea to bring a cultural festival to MediaCity - the inaugural We Invented the Weekend (WITW) festival finally happened!

Canvassing opinion and buy-in from MediaCity’s partners Lowry , BBC and The University of Salford as well as placemaking tsar Wayne Hemingway MBE – there was an appetite and enthusiasm to make it happen from the start.

Wayne reflected at the time: “The idea of creating an inclusive festival in the spaces, places and waterways of MediaCity, with broad appeal across Salford’s, Manchester and the North’s diverse communities is mouth-watering.” And his words couldn’t have rung more true.

As the weekend culminated in thousands of local people enjoying and taking part in a mind-boggling array of FREE cultural activities it was testament to an idea and concept that is right for the times, inclusive and importantly, fun.

WITW is an inspiring example of the power of partnership and how a gargantuan ambition can be realised where there is a shared vision, passion and commitment from an outstanding range of partners.

Cultural powerhouses such as the BBC and The Lowry alongside Peel L&P , Bupa and The University of Salford , plus amazing arts and community organisations of all sizes – the public, private and independent sector all working together to create a celebration that makes culture open and available to all.

And this is the place to do it – the wide open spaces at MediaCity and The Quays are unrivalled - a stage and a playground for Salford and the whole region to enjoy.

We often talk about MediaCity’s growing reputation as the leading waterfront, cultural destination in the North. This weekend confirmed that it is.

Read more about the history of the weekend and the success of WITW here: Thousands descend on Salford as inaugural We Invented the Weekend Festival championed a massive success - Media City UK