Boost for Harrogate Convention Centre as Thought Bubble event wins cash grant

Harrogate NHS Nightingale Hospital put on standby as Covid virus cases rise across the north

Thought Bubble Festival has been awarded £51,000 as part of the Government’s £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund (CRF) to help face the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic and to ensure they have a sustainable future, the Culture Secretary has announced today.

The Yorkshire-based Comic Art Festival and comic con launched in 2007 and is one of the most important dates in the global comics calendar with hundreds of artists and tens of thousands of fans descending on events across Yorkshire and the Harrogate Convention Centre each November.

The newly-awarded grant will help secure Thought Bubble’s future as well as allow them to deliver their ambitious and much anticipated digital comic con this November.

Thought Bubble will return to Harrogate Convention Centre physically in November 2021 and will be hosting a massive and free to attend digital comic con this year on November 14-15 in 2020 featuring some of the biggest names in comics from all over the world.

Lisa Wood, Thought Bubble founder and director said: “We’re incredibly pleased that our bid to the Culture Recovery Fund has been successful.

"In a year in which we’ve lost nearly 100% of our revenue this is very welcome news and goes a way to helping us secure the future of Thought Bubble and to deliver our digital con this year.

"Comics are one of the most important artistic mediums we have as a culture and so to receive this acknowledgement of the amazing artists and creators we champion feels great.

"We’re so proud that Thought Bubble is a place for the global comics family to meet each year and we can’t wait to welcome our friends back to our beloved Yorkshire next year!”

Recipients of the Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award at the iconic San Diego Comic-Con, Thought Bubble engage in a huge amount of positive work that can be continued thanks to this support.

The new grant will allow Thought Bubble to continue their work on a series of important projects and initiatives including The Rainbow Age - an LGBTQ* book group in Leeds library, Bub’s Lounge – a partnership with Specialist Autism Services to create a quiet space at the convention for those needing a break from the busy exhibition halls as well as numerous projects with refugees and asylum seekers and a huge commitment to offer free convention tickets to disadvantaged groups and schools.

Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said: "This funding is a vital boost for the theatres, music venues, museums and cultural organisations that form the soul of our nation.

"It will protect these special places, save jobs and help the culture sector’s recovery.

“These places and projects are cultural beacons the length and breadth of the country.

"This unprecedented investment in the arts is proof this Government is here for culture, with further support to come in the days and weeks ahead so that the culture sector can bounce back strongly.”

Chair, Arts Council England, Sir Nicholas Serota, said: “Theatres, museums, galleries, dance companies and music venues bring joy to people and life to our cities, towns and villages.

"This life-changing funding will save thousands of cultural spaces loved by local communities and international audiences.

"Further funding is still to be announced and we are working hard to support our sector during these challenging times.”

New £250,000 grant for Harrogate Theatre secures 'immediate future'

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