Totally Thames Festival | Bourne End
Celebration
The Thames Festival officially launched in September 1997, with the inaugural event opening with a record-breaking high-wire act across the Thames. The Thames Festival and related events are operated by the independent charity, the Thames Festival Trust. From 1998 to 2012, the festival focused primarily on the area between Westminster Bridge and Tower Bridge. Held on the second weekend of September, it featured a diverse range of activities including street art, participatory dance performances, family art workshops, riverside craft and food markets, a feast on Southwark Bridge, and a spectacular nighttime carnival culminating in a fireworks display over the river. In addition to the "Thunder Panorama" project, the Thames Festival Trust also conducts heritage and education work throughout the year. Its flagship arts education projects, "World Rivers" and "The Story of Water," are conducted in partnership with the British Council. These projects, emphasizing art-based learning and the value of bringing professional artists into schools, have been implemented in over 500 schools across the UK and in 40 overseas countries.