History[edit]

It was initiated in the 1920s by George Bell during his time as Dean of Canterbury. Guest artists during his time included John Masefield, Gustav Holst, Dorothy L. Sayers, and T. S. Eliot (whose 1935 drama Murder in the Cathedral was commissioned by Bell for the festival). That was within the first ten years of the festival in which it had flourished, with its plays. The festival was established closely with the friends of Canterbury organization. In 1970 the Dean at the time and city council got together and joined forces, to work on the festival together for the first time. Then in 1984 the festival got a revamping. A new theatre had been built in Canterbury, and the festival started to include almost every art form. That year the festival included music, visual arts, cinema, theatre, literature and more. International events helped the festival gain the name of Kent’s international arts festival in 2004. That year the festival had lasted three weeks. Now the festival is two weeks but holds over 200 events in those two weeks with 65,000 festival goers. The festival also includes things like classical music, contemporary music and dance, international music, comedy, talks and even walks.