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Chester The Giant City

Tall orders for giant festival

Preparations are under foot for a larger than life celebration in Chester. Gigantic effigies created by the public will tower over thousands of spectators from around the country as they process through Chester during The Midsummer Watch Parade.

The event takes place in the historic Roman city every year to mark the summer solstice. This year will be the biggest yet with an extended family of giants, The BiG Giant Parade, joining the festivities led by the Lord Mayor of Chester Councillor John Ebo on June 20th & 21st.

Giant making was first recorded in Chester in the 10th Century. The tradition was reborn in 1989 with a modern family of giants to continue the lineage into the present. 2009 will celebrate the 20th Anniversary of Chester’s modern Family of Giants but also the beginning of ChestertheGiantCity, the organisation that celebrates everything ‘giant’ within the walled city, thus creating a link between Chester’s past, present and future.

A host of events are taking place throughout the year to celebrate ChestertheGiantCity, leading up to and beyond the Midsummer Watch Parade. Giant making sessions have proved extremely popular with the public and record numbers are expected to attend this year’s parade. The country’s only surviving shrine to the Roman goddess Minerva will receive gigantic pilgrims during the festival of Minerva on Sunday, 31st May. The free festival will take place from 11am to 5pm at Minerva’s Shrine in Edgar’s Field, Handbridge just over the Old Dee Bridge.

The giant family has found a permanent home with partners BiG Storage at Printworks, Sealand Road, Chester. The company provides self storage, business units and domestic storage space for rent in Chester and in several other locations across the North West. BiG Storage is working on a number of projects with ChestertheGiantCity, including the creation of a community museum. A recently held competition for local school children saw the creation of a ‘Terabyte’ giant, combining the theme of giants with the gigantic storage capabilities of modern technology.

Action for Children is the named Charity of the Year for the ChestertheGiantCity celebrations.

Kristine Szulik from ChestertheGiantCity said;
“This year’s Midsummer Watch celebrations will be more spectacular than ever with the newly formed BiG Giant Parade. There’s excitement from all our giant makers, both the seasoned veterans and the host of newcomers. Anyone is welcome to join in or come and watch. We expect visitors to travel from around the country to witness one of the most significant festivals in the ancient calendar.”

For more information contact Kristine Szulik, Project Director for ChestertheGiantCity, on 07789 425 468.

Big Storage – www.bigstorage.info

Minerva Festival celebrations – www.romantoursuk.com and www.chesterromanfestival.co.uk

Action For Children – www.actionforchildren.org.uk

ENDS – 451 words

For more information and photos please visit:
http://www.marketingprojects.co.uk/news/chester-the-giant-city

Chester is unique in that it has a Family of Giants and a tradition of giant-making that can be traced back through Guild records to the 14th Century.
Chester’s modern Family of Giants started life when Dave Roberts came across ‘Nathandriel’, A Giant that was on a visit from Huddersfield to Chester. Nathandriel’s maker (and author of Medieval Dancing Giants Lee Gilbert, had brought Nathandriel on a pilgrimage to Chester. In Medieval times Chester had been the Mecca for giant-building and possessed the only known Family of Giants in the country. Giants were walking the streets of Chester in the late 1400s until the puritanical reign of Oliver Cromwell in the mid 1660s.
Dave Roberts was so inspired by the notion that Giants had been such an important activity in Chester he decided to reintroduce the building of Giants into Chester as a creative way in which to encourage young people in Lache and Blacon to gain an insight into their culture and heritage.
In Midsummer 1989 a male giant (still used in the Midsummer Watch today), and the Father of Chester’s current Family of Giants, became the first giant to walk through the streets of Chester for over 300 years.
In Midsummer 2009 Chester will celebrate not only the 20th Anniversary of Chester’s modern Family of Giants but also the beginning of “ChestertheGiantCity” thus creating a link between Chester’s past, present and future.

ChestertheGiantCity is a Community Interest Company that has been created to unite the Private, Public and Third Sector around the physical and metaphorical concept of giants. The company will draw upon the culture and heritage of the city and surrounds to create vibrant and innovative social, environmental and economic opportunities for communities.
Individuals, groups, charities, businesses, and whole communities will benefit as they will be offered the opportunity to interpret the concept of ChestertheGiantCity.. This will create job opportunities, build businesses (social enterprises) and develop the tourist industry. In the long-term the whole creative model will add value to the regeneration process of Chester & District.
The company will support the development and growth of future community-based activities based upon the concept of ChestertheGiantCity.

Board of Directors:
David Pickering (Chair) Brian Bailey (President) Raewyn Bailey
Peter Bulmer Jason Butler Stefan Nicholls
Dave Roberts Robbie Stocker Kristine Szulik
Stephen Wundke James Harries (Company Secretary)

Contact: Kristine Szulik t: 01244 318703
m: 07789 425 468 e: kristine.szulik@btinternet.com

Action for Children Notes to Editors

• Action for Children is one of the UK’s largest children’s charities working with over 156,000 children, young people and their families at around 420 projects across the UK.
• Previously known as NCH, Action for Children is committed to helping the most vulnerable children and young people break through injustice, deprivation and inequality so they can achieve their full potential.
• For further information visit www.actionforchildren.org.uk

Press Contacts: Jane Harrad-Roberts Mob: 07785 395705
James Brady Mob: 07872 051309
MARKETING PROJECTS Tel: 01244 330000
Email: info@marketingprojects.co.uk

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