Festival is commended at tourism awards
A MEDIEVAL festival was highly commended for a county tourism award.
The Bosworth Medieval Festival which takes place at Bosworth Battlefield Heritage Centre received the accolade in the Best Festival or Event - Paid category at the Leicestershire Tourism and Hospitality Awards 2018.
The heritage event takes place on the third weekend in August and has been running in various forms for more than 30 years.
Visitors of all ages immerse themselves in the history and life of the medieval period as well as seeing a spectacular re-enactment of the 1485 Battle of Bosworth.
The 2018 edition featured a twist on the historic event with an ‘alternative battle’ staged by the Wars of the Roses Federation in which King Richard III won the day and retained his crown.
There was also an interactive debate at the festival with audiences being led in a discussion about what might be different today if Richard III had been the victor.
The heritage centre is run by Leicestershire County Council, which also runs the Century Theatre in Coalville, which was commended in the Best Team category at the awards.
Councillor Richard Blunt, cabinet member for heritage, leisure and arts, said: “This is a wonderful achievement for some of the most iconic venues in the county.
“The heritage, history and culture that we have on our doorstep is something we are extremely proud of.
“I am delighted that this welldeserved accolade has been received by two of the county council’s fantastic venues.”
There were 153 finalists awards across 22 categories.
Overall winners included Bruntingthorpe Events, The Link Hotel and the Timber Festival.
The final award of the evening was Tourism Superstar and was presented to James Bowie, former owner of The Belmont Hotel in Leicester, whose family ran the hotel for over 80 years.
The awards are now in their eighth year and are aimed at finding and recognising the best tourism businesses in Leicestershire.
A full list of the finalists is avaiable on the Go Leicestershire website. for the