Birmingham Festival 2023: Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight backs 10 day event this summer

Birmingham City Council announced the Birmingham Festival 2023 to mark the first anniversary of the Commonwealth Games.

Talented Brummie and Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight has been announced as a patron of the festival - which will take place this summer from July 28 to August - a year after the Birmingham 2022 event.

Steven Knight was the co-director of the phenomenal Commonwelath Games Opening Ceremony which included a Peaky Blinders musical performance.

Knight, 63, has now backed the Birmingham Festival 2023 as a patron along with former gold-medal winning Team England Netball Captain, Ama Agbeze.

It is not known if Knight will be part of the creative process of the festival - which will include live music and performance, creative and participatory activities, and big-screen content. But one thing’s for sure, the 2023 festival will be recreating the magic of the festival in 2022.

The Commonwealth Games 2022 took place in Birmingham from July 28 to August 8 last year during which time athletes from Commonwealth nations across the globe - from South Africa, Australia, Tuvalu and more - visited the city to compete against the best of the best.

The multi-day mega sports event culminated in a fire-cracking, grand Closing Ceremony that included Brummie legends Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne.

Patron Steven Knight CBE said: “I’m proud to be a Patron for Birmingham Festival 23 and proud that Birmingham City Council truly values culture.

“The Games are still very fresh in people’s minds, it was such a joyful period in the city’s history. And now, with a great team pulling out all the stops to make this year’s events a celebration of the anniversary, people will again have something to look forward to that everyone can enjoy, and it’s all free. I can’t wait to see what the programme has in store.”

Knight was recently announced as the writer for an unnamed Star Wars film set to release in 2025. He also launched a film and TV studio in Digbeth called the Digbeth Loc - where the Peaky Blinders film is set to be shot later in 2023.

Who is producing Birmingham Festival 2023?

Birmingham Festival 2023 will be delivered by the team behind the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games Festival, including Outdoor Places Unusual Spaces (OPUS) and JA Productions, led by Creative Director Raidene Carter and Executive Director Will Mauchline, and with programme partners including SAMPAD, Fabric, ACE Dance & Music, and United By 2022 Legacy Charity.

Birmingham City Council said in a statement: “The Festival also serves to celebrate the city’s rich cultural offer through programming committed to diversity, inclusion and homegrown talent.”

The council also launched a Made in Brum programme calling out to creatives and artist groups in the city to be part of the festival. You can get involved with the festival and more details can be found on the Birmingham Festival website.