Grimsby’s maritime heritage was celebrated last month with the return of the town’s Festival of the Sea, reports Paul Scott.

Grimsby’s Festival of the Sea returned to the town last month.

The event, produced by Grimsby-based events organisation The Culture House, returned for its second instalment and took place on Saturday, 16 July.

Held in Heritage Square, between the river Freshney and Alexandra Dock, the festival hosted vibrant street theatre performances, dance and live music.

The town’s links to the sea were also celebrated through its seafood sector, with a diverse range of dishes on offer.

The sidewinder Ross Tiger, converted into a museum ship in 1992, also proved popular with festivalgoers.

The Culture House’s Charlotte Bowen, the festival co-director, told Fishing News: “Festival of the Sea Grimsby was established to celebrate our connections to the sea – past, present and future.

The museum ship Ross Tiger proved popular with visitors.

“We were delighted to bring the historic Alexandra Dock area alive with quality performance and family activities, as well as a big screen highlighting Grimsby’s seafaring heritage and current operations through the ports of Grimsby and Immingham.”

The festival also featured heritage walks around the haven, river Freshney and Alexandra Dock, and live music, including a performance from acoustic roots duo Mambo Jambo, who took the festival audience on a lively ‘upbeat sea voyage, across the seas from the Scottish islands, to Caribbean islands, Cuba, Gulf of Mexico and New Orleans’.

Charlotte Bowen told FN: “Around 4,000 attended on the day, which brought smiles and fun to a newly regenerated area, and we plan to explore more heritage stories, while looking firmly to the future, in 2023.”

This story was taken from the latest issue of Fishing News. For more up-to-date and in-depth reports on the UK and Irish commercial fishing sector, subscribe to Fishing News here or buy the latest single issue for just £3.30 here

Image credits: Paul J Cunningham

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