Roll up, roll up! Norwich and Great Yarmouth are set to be at the centre of national celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of circus next year.
Norwich - in a joint bid with Great Yarmouth - is one of six places to be crowned Cities of Circus and will play a key role in the Circus250 festivities.
The other places picked to be Cities of Circus are London, Bristol, Blackpool, Newcastle-under-Lyme and Belfast.
Among the Norwich highlights will be a circus-themed parade with life-sized elephant puppets winding through the streets as part of the Lord Mayor's Celebration in July. There will also be a Big Top circus festival in Chapelfield Gardens.
Norwich City Council has successfully bid for £150,000 of funding from Arts Council England to put on City of Circus events and more details will be revealed in the New Year.
Alan Waters, leader of Norwich City Council, said: 'The Lord Mayor's Celebration is the perfect showcase to celebrate 250 years of circus. The city has deep roots with its circus history as it was the birthplace of the famous 19th century black circus proprietor Pablo Fanque. Meanwhile, in Great Yarmouth, the Hippodrome remains Britain's only surviving complete circus building so we have much to contribute to the UK-wide efforts to mark two-and-a-half centuries of all things circus.'
Norwich City Council is collaborating on the project with Great Yarmouth-based SeaChange Arts, Norwich Arts Centre and Norwich-based Lost in Translation Circus.
Massimiliano Rossetti, co-director of Lost in Translation Circus and The Oak Circus Centre, said: 'We are looking forward to working with all the partners to provide some brilliant events that will really put the city on the international circus map. From our Norwich base LiT have travelled the world to perform and now we're bringing the world to the city. I can't wait to reveal our circus programme early in the new year.'
Darren Cross, from SeaChange Arts, said: 'We are absolutely delighted to be part of Circus250. There is a tremendous heritage of circus in Great Yarmouth and we look forward to putting on a wonderful show as part of Great Yarmouth Arts Festival, something that will get people really excited about the history of circus and also the future of it.'
For more about Circus250, visit www.circus250.com
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here