Why did the Brexit Festival flop?
The project, which is underway from March through November this year, cost the government £120 million. Unboxed: Creativity in the UK is its official name, but it quickly earned the moniker “The Festival of Brexit” after Theresa May revealed her plans for it in 2018. The festival will honor “the greatest of British ingenuity and innovation, culture, and legacy,” she said at the time of the Tory convention.
The festival’s creative director, Martin Green, however, recognized the conflict at the core of the project: how could a festival that, like most festivals, aimed to bring people together in a spirit of togetherness also maintain its associations with Brexit, arguably the most polarizing issue the nation has faced recently?
The Unboxed brand has hosted a variety of artistic events thus far, some of which were weird and esoteric. These included the avant-garde theater piece Tour de Moon, an oil rig turned art installation, and local history on VR headsets.
However, in addition to the festival’s lack of a clear vision, a number of historic world events, including the pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, have unfolded since the idea for the festival was first proposed. This has, quite frankly, meant that the media and public have had more important things to focus on.
Thus, “The Festival of Brexit” passed without the majority of the general public knowing anything about it.
