Travel review: Seeing Durham in new light after visit to stunning Lumiere biennial

While Durham may have missed out to Bradford in the battle to be named UK City of Culture 2025, a visit to this wonderful corner of England quickly proves that it has not let that disappointment call a halt to celebrations of creativity.

My wife Rachel and I travelled from Sheffield to Durham City by train to coincide with the stunning Lumiere light art biennial, which effectively transforms its town centre into a giant art gallery.

The event was back for the eighth time this year, having first started in 2009 with 22 illuminations around the city. The event, which takes place every other November over several consecutive nights, is a central pillar of an ongoing creative regeneration strategy for the area borne out of its City of Culture bid.

Joining the tens of thousands of people out on the streets for the Friday night of the free-to-attend event, it was easy to see why.

The largest crowds were congregated around Durham Cathedral, where there were some truly stunning pieces of work. Those queueing to enter the historic building were treated to Spanish artist Javier Riera’s immersive Liquid Geometry, which involved three-dimensional geometric shapes being projected on the outside of the cathedral and other surrounding buildings in the square.

Inside the cathedral was the opportunity to view the first UK showing of acclaimed Chinese artist Ai Weiwei’s Illuminated Bottle Rack incorporating 61 antique chandeliers.

Equally as memorable was the ‘pulsating heart’ of this year’s Lumiere; a piece called Pulse Topology involving 4,000 lightbulbs activated by the pulses of visitors and spread. It was magical to see how young and old responded to the amazing piece of work of Rafael Lozano-Hemmer and faces lighting up as bulbs responded to people putting their hands close to them.

There was much more to see around the cathedral and its grounds, while shops, pubs and restaurants on the cobbled streets of Durham were packed thanks to the festival.

We took our own break with an absolutely delicious meal at The Cellar Door restaurant.

Located in a 13th century cellar conversion, The Cellar Door is tucked away on the street leading up to Durham Cathedral. The steps down into the restaurant, which is split across two levels once you descend into it, may prove a challenge for some with mobility issues but otherwise adds to its memorable charm.

The seasonal menu changes monthly and is inspired by fresh ingredients, presented by friendly and knowledgable staff. Rachel enjoyed a starter of camembert ravioli followed by beef shin as the main, while I had a tremendous smoked haddock, pea and leak risotto followed by Loch Duart salmon.

The courses were all full of flavour, well-presented and perfectly proportioned – meaning we both had space for the lemongrass panna cotta dessert.

After eating we continued on through the town to take in as many of the other light installations as possible. Among our favourites were Ron Haselden’s Watchtower featuring drawings made by local schoolchildren and others from further afield which had been turned into luminous portraits using LED-embedded light rope. We also enjoyed Lampounette, an oversized desk lamp which was first shown in 2021 and is now a permanent installation.

Of course, while that particular installation may now be permanent the majority of the rest is not but we were fortunate to have enough time in Durham to experience the city away from the biennial celebrations.

We arrived on Friday lunchtime, with a direct CrossCountry train from Sheffield to Durham taking just over 90 minutes.

After leaving our bags at our riverside hotel, the Radisson Blu Durham, we headed over the bridge and took the relatively brief walk through town to the cathedral to see it in the daylight.

Built in 1093, Durham Cathedral has been a place of pilgrimage, worship and welcome for almost a millennium. It is also the home of the Shrine of St Cuthbert and the Tomb of the Venerable Bede. The cathedral forms part of the Durham UNESCO World Heritage Site, a designation granted in 1986.

While in more recent years it has been used as a filming location for blockbusters such as Avengers Endgame and Harry Potter, the fascinating museum within the cathedral is focused on the more distant past.

The experience starts in the Monks’ Dormitory which still has the original oak roof of the early 15th Century and provides an insight into the lives of the monks and daily prayer routines which are largely echoed in the cathedral’s religious programme today.

The tour eventually takes you into the former Great Kitchen of the cathedral, which today is the home of treasures of St Cuthbert and even the remains of his handcarved coffin. We were particularly taken with the original Sanctuary Ring, which dates from the 1100s. Fugitives who touched the ring would be granted sanctuary for 37 days before either facing trial or going into exile.

A replica version now sits on the North Door of the Cathedral but it was impressive to see the real thing.

Before heading back to our hotel for a brief dip in the swimming pool ahead of our evening out we had an enjoyable lunch in the Undercroft cafe in the cathedral and visited the adjoining gift shop to pick up a Sanctuary Ring bauble.

The following morning we enjoyed a riverside walk and a potter around the shops before heading back to the railway station for the journey home. The next light art biennial may not be taking place in Durham until 2025 but we are determined to make a follow-up visit to the city before then.

*Chris Burn’s visit was arranged by Visit County Durham (www.thisisdurham.com). He travelled by CrossCountry train and stayed at the Radisson Blue Durham.