Bells to ring out at The Public in celebration of London 2012

The Public in West Bromwich are joining in with national celebrations to ring bells for London 2012 – and are seeking volunteers to join in! 

Organisers of London 2012 are searching for bells to be rung at 8.12am, for three minutes, on Friday 27 July, to celebrate the first day of the Olympic Games.

Martin Creed at the London 2012 Festival launchThousands of people across the UK are expected to ring a bell as part of project, ‘Work No. 1197: All the bells in a country rung as quickly and as loudly as possible for three minutes’, a new work by Turner Prize-winning artist Martin Creed.

Members of the public will be invited to head to the West Bromwich arts centre at 8am on Friday to join in with celebrations at 8.12am.  Anyone can take part, ringing any kind of bell they can find: church bells, door bells, bicycle bells, baby’s bells, even a bell on a mobile phone.  In doing so they will join in the UK’s largest London 2012 celebration and help to create a new artwork as part of the London 2012 Festival.

In taking part in the celebrations, visitors to The Public will join nationally regarded organisations, including The Royal Navy, The RAF, The National Football Museum and The Churches Conservation Trust, in a spectacular one-off event.

The sound of thousands of bells across the country ringing out at the same time to mark this historical moment will be a thrilling experience and a nationwide celebration.

For more information, or to download a special ‘All The Bells’ ring tone visit www.allthebells.com.

Linda Saunders, Managing Director of The Public said: “We’re delighted to be providing an opportunity for the whole community to come together and join in with such a spectacular collaborative art project.  All ages are invited to join in the celebrations and take part in a piece of history.”

The London 2012 Festival is a 12-week nationwide celebration bringing together leading artists from across the world with the very best from the UK, opening on Midsummer’s Day, 21 June, and running until 9 September 2012. It forms the finale of the Cultural Olympiad, the four year programme of arts and cultural events celebrating London 2012.

In total, over 70 arts and cultural events are taking place over the summer in the West Midlands as part of the London 2012 Festival and Cultural Olympiad.

Principal funders of the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival are Arts Council England, Legacy Trust UK and the Olympic Lottery Distributor. BP and BT are Premier Partners of the Cultural Olympiad and the London 2012 Festival.