Experiences & Cultural Activities in Newcastle-under-Lyme

With a cornucopia of cultural events and experiences on offer across the borough, Newcastle-under-Lyme is a hive of arts activity. 

Simply strolling through Newcastle or Kidsgrove, visitors will come across artworks designed to engage and inspire, from the ‘journeys’ mural at Kidsgrove train station to Ian Randall’s The Return, the arts are interwoven into the very fabric of the borough. 

Theatre, the arts and Newcastle-under-Lyme’s link to the modern circus 

A major hub of culture in the borough, the New Vic Theatre was the first purpose-built theatre-in-the-round in Europe, opening in 1986 thanks to £1m raised by residents. 

The theatre is a pioneer in integrating professional theatre work with an extensive community and education programme, while shows created at the New Vic also tour nationally and internationally, with work developed at the theatre transferring to London’s West End and Broadway in New York. 

The New Vic’s Borderlines is an award-winning initiative working with individuals, groups and communities facing challenges, including young people at risk of offending and adults with learning difficulties. 

Borderlines helps people find new and positive ways to understand themselves, developing self-awareness, self-worth and positive attitudes. 

Appetite is the New Vic’s creative people and places programme, designed to inspire and engage people by creating unforgettable arts experiences in public spaces. 

A taste for culture, performance and excitement is part of the community of Newcastle-under-Lyme, birthplace of the Father of the Modern Circus, Philip Astley, whose amazing story from military man to equine enthusiast and eventual creator of the circus ring and Ringmaster role is detailed at the Philip Astley Centre. 

With artefacts, exhibitions and a chance to learn some circus skills, the centre offers a fun way to delve into the origins of one of the world’s most popular and enduring forms of performance art. 

The area also has a thriving live music scene, with venues hosting regular gigs supporting local talent and touring musicians, as well as poetry, comedy and craft events. 

As well as art galleries and exhibitions in traditional spaces, visitors can enjoy public art ranging from the stunning tile mosaic at the Guildhall to subway murals, electric cabinets transformed into street art and sculptures by internationally renowned Newcastle-based artist Andy Edwards.  

An interactive map (Art of Newcastle under Lyme Interactive Map) highlights many of these fantastic public artworks, some of which feature on the Alston Emery Art Trail. 

And let’s not forget the literary connections to the borough. Novelist and playwright Arnold Bennett attended grammar school in Newcastle-under-Lyme, while HG Wells famously began work on The Time Machine while living in Victoria Road, Basford in 1888. It’s believed his explorations of Wolstanton and May Bank – and views over the Potteries – helped inspire The War of the Worlds. Vera Brittain, author of A Testament of Youth famously detailing her experiences in the first world war, was born in Newcastle-under-Lyme and is commemorated in a poignant sculpture in Brampton Park.