CONTACTS Belfast stretches out along BELFAST, CAPITAL OF NORTHERN EVENTS IN the banks of the River BELFAST Lagan. Covering 115 square IRELAND is a vibrant, prospering city, The Foreign & Commonwealth Office kilometres, it is much larger home to 282,000 people. Surrounded by King Charles Street, London SW1A 2 AH than any of Northern Left: Belfast is a city of festivals and celebrations. green hills and craggy peaks, Belfast is Amazing firework displays often light up the night sky. www.fco.gov.uk Ireland’s four other cities. located where the River Lagan flows into Below: Belfast folk know how to have a good time. Northern Ireland Tourist Board Belfast Lough, a sheltered inlet of the The city has been described as “Europe’s friendliest regional capital”. 59 North Street, Belfast BT1 1NB Irish Sea. A thousand years ago it was Tel:+44 (0) 28 9023 1221 known in ancient Irish as Béal Feirste, Bottom: Tourists and locals alike crowd onto the Fax: +44 (0) 28 9024 0960 streets at festival-time. ‘the sandy ford across the mouth of www.discovernorthernireland.com The Ulster Folk and the river’. Transport Museum contains Belfast Welcome Centre one of the world’s best collections of vernacular Once a quiet fishing village, Belfast 47 Donegall Place, Belfast BT1 5AD architecture and historic Tel:+44 (0) 28 9024 6609 transport, from cornmills blossomed into a thriving city during Fax: +44 (0) 28 9031 2424 and sawmills to railways, the Industrial Revolution of the 18th Email: [email protected] trams, buses and bicycles. century. Its linen manufacturing, - There is also an exhibition www.gotobelfast.com IN CITY BELFAST about the ill-fated liner, engineering and shipbuilding industries Titanic. prospered and the population increased Northern Ireland Assembly dramatically. Queen Victoria granted Parliament Buildings, Belfast full city status in 1888. By the Stormont, Belfast BT4 3XX www.niassembly.gov.uk time the great liner, Titanic was launched by Harland & Wolff in 1912, Belfast had Northern Ireland Executive the world’s biggest weaving mills and www.northernireland.gov.uk tobacco factories, the most extensive Visitors and office workers ropeworks ever built, and the world’s relax outside City Hall greatest shipyard. INcity Belfast is produced by the Foreign & in the heart of Belfast. Commonwealth Office for distribution through The lawns surrounding British Embassies, High Commissions and Consulates. this famous building are Although traditional industries declined lined with monuments. March June following the Second World War and © Crown copyright. The text may be freely reproduced Belfast Film Festival at various venues Shankill Community Festival featuring outside the UK with or without acknowledgement, civil unrest and terrorist activity added across the city. a wide variety of community-based except for sale or advertising purposes. to Belfast’s social and economic www.belfastfilmfestival.org events. problems, since the 1990s Belfast has Published by the Foreign & Commonwealth Office. St Patrick’s Day Festival with street Designed by Staziker Jones, Cardiff. enjoyed a remarkable renaissance. carnival and ‘live music’. July Printed by Abba Litho Sales, London. www.belfastcity.gov.uk/events International Rose Week, a great floral March 2003 BELFAST BOASTS SOME MAGNIFICENT Order No: 2072 spectacle at Sir Thomas and Lady ARCHITECTURE, both Victorian April Dixon Park. (1837–1901) and Edwardian (1901–1910). Titanic Made in Belfast — exhibition www.parks.belfastcity.gov.uk Front cover: Inside City Hall — a fine monument to The City Hall (1906) is regarded as one celebrating Belfast as the largest Belfast’s civic pride. of the finest Classical Renaissance shipbuilding port in the world. August Back cover:‘Masquerade’, one of many theatrical buildings in Europe. It dominates the www.belfastcity.gov.uk/events Feile an Phobail, West Belfast — productions enjoyed in Belfast. The sumptuous interior of buzzing downtown area and is the focal the Grand Opera House Europe’s largest community arts has been fully restored to point of civic entertainment, rallies and May festival. www.feilebelfast.com its former glory. Its celebrations. All photographs are courtesy of the Northern Ireland audiences enjoy world-class The Cathedral Arts Quarter Festival, Gay Pride, a celebration of Belfast’s Tourist Board. performances of opera, featuring music, literature, comedy gay community. drama, musicals, ballet and The Grand Opera House nearby is comedy. and visual arts. www.cqaf.com Belfast City Speed Festival, celebrating Northern Ireland’s premier theatre. Balmoral Show, town meets country in Northern Ireland’s contribution to Its extravagantly opulent gold and Ireland’s major agricultural/food the world of motorsport. crimson interior is almost upstaged by event. www.balmoralshow.co.uk the ornate Crown Liquor Saloon across Lord Mayor’s Show, colourful Lord October the street. Gilded mirrors, glazed tiles, Mayor’s show takes place in the city Hallowe’en, carnival parade and and the world’s only gas-lit webcam centre with something for everyone. firework display. make it Belfast’s favourite pub! www.belfastcity.gov.uk/events November/December October/November Cinemagic — World Screen Festival for May/June Belfast Festival at Queen’s — Ireland’s young people. www.cinemagic.org.uk Belfast City Summer Festival, largest arts festival, at a range of Christmas Craft Fair for unusual culminating in the Belfast Carnival city venues. Christmas gifts at the King’s Hall. Parade at the end of June. www.belfastfestival.com www.kingshall.co.uk The huge £91 million On the river, the £750 million Laganside The Waterfront Hall, The city’s many corporate overseas Shopping streets like Royal Belfast City Council is the largest of The city holds no fewer BELFAST PEOPLE love to celebrate, Odyssey complex, seen Belfast’s foremost Avenue have huge malls and than 13 annual arts events here under construction. redevelopment project is one of the most conference and concert investors benefit from competitive costs, arcades offering top Northern Ireland’s 26 local government and the Belfast Carnival and so enjoy the many entertainment It contains the largest ambitious in the UK with hotels, offices, venue, was recently world- good communications and well-educated international retail names. authorities. It provides a huge range of Parade is one of the most and sports festivals. Most famous of indoor arena in Northern wide runner-up in the One of the UK’s biggest popular events on the Ireland where a wide range riverside apartments, new bridges and Association of Conference staff, while tourism contributes more department stores planned services, from leisure centres and parks calendar. the 13 annual arts events is the Belfast of events are staged, the Waterfront Hall, a concert and Centres’ Apex Awards. than £114 million annually to Belfast’s for the city centre will help to waste recycling. The Chief Executive Festival which has been a showcase of Conferences are one of to keep downtown Belfast Traditional Irish dancing is including indoor athletics, conference venue. Laganside’s dominant economy. is responsible to a Council of 51 outstanding international talent for boxing championships and Belfast’s greatest tourist buzzing with shoppers. as popular as ever. rock concerts. attraction is the Odyssey complex, home growth areas. members who are elected every four more than 40 years. Féile an Phobail to the W5 interactive discovery centre, OVER 3,000 UNIVERSITY GRADUATES years and reflect the city’s diversity of in West Belfast claims to be Europe’s a 10,000-seat arena, cinema, restaurants enter the labour market every year. political and religious affiliations. largest community festival. The St Anne’s Cathedral was Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival is at partly completed and opened and bars. Queen’s University Belfast, founded in the 1890s, but only in 1845, and the newer University of BELFAST IS A CITY OF NEIGHBOURHOODS, Belfast nightlife ranges from the cutting edge of contemporary arts. finished almost a century In a city which seems to have a church on Ulster are both top-class international where most families live in houses with throbbing dance clubs to later. Inside are some more intimate pubs where wonderful mosaics, including every corner, St Anne’s Cathedral in the institutions. Queen’s, with 18,500 gardens rather than apartments. Many drinkers enjoy the soothing Musical tastes in the city are more varied one with over 150,000 heart of the trendy Cathedral Quarter students, is one of the Top 20 UK areas, such as Stranmillis, Cherryvalley, sounds of traditional Irish than most, and country and western, pieces. ballads. is the biggest. St Malachy’s Church can universities out of 170 independently Knock, around Queen’s University and rap, blues and jazz as well as classical only be described as a ‘castle’, with its assessed on teaching and research. the Lisburn Road, have a ‘village’ attract large audiences. The Belfast- pink turrets and ceiling like an upside atmosphere. based Ulster Orchestra is thought of as down wedding cake. Belfast Castle, built The original Tudor-style red The city is proud of its many libraries. one of the finest in the British Isles and and yellow brick building of in 1870, rises from the rugged splendour Queen’s University was The Linen Hall Library, dating from While the population is almost equally enjoys an international reputation. It is Belfast’s citizens have been of Cave Hill Country Park, under a crag designed by Sir Charles 1788, is one of the oldest subscription divided between indigenous Protestants often to be heard at the Ulster Hall and Lanyon, Belfast’s great described by one columnist known as Napoleon’s Nose. architect of the Victorian libraries anywhere. The Belfast Central as “the most honest, and Catholics, Belfast is also home to at prestigious events such as the Last Age. Since it was founded in Library and Public Records Office NI are cheerful, friendly and well- thousands of people of Asian origin, Night of the Proms in London.