£500,000 Boost for Brunel 200 South West Projects

This year's 200th anniversary celebrations commemorating the birth of engineer and architect Isambard Kingdom Brunel have been given a half million pound boost with a major award from the Heritage Lottery Fund. The £528,000 award is for a spread of events across the South West. The region-wide projects will integrate with the programme developed for Bristol by the city's Brunel 200 initiative, which will now lead celebrations across the region. HLF will fund more than 20 individual projects in towns, historic sites, schools and communities throughout the region, from Swindon in the east to Porthcurno in the far west.
See press release for details. A list of all the projects, including quotes from media spokespeople, can be downloaded here.

Network Rail Engineers Links with Brunel 200

Network Rail has announced its commitment to support the Brunel 200 celebrations in 2006. See press release for details.

Cheers! Brunel 200 Beer Lauched



The official Brunel 200 beer created by the award-winning Butcombe Brewery, leading independent brewers in the West of England, has been launched as part of Brunel 200. See press release for details. Photo shows James Taljaard of Arts & Business South West and James Durie of Business West toasting Brunel with Butcombe Brewery beer.

Save Brunel's Cigar



Brunel 200 has condemned the decision by a children's publisher to remove the cigar from Robert Howlett's photograph of Brunel standing before the launch chains of the Great Eastern. Previous attempts of censoring the cigar for fear it might cause offence are noted in the Brunel comic, a graphic biography of Brunel’s life and work, to be published in March 2006by Brunel 200 with a print run of 100,000.
 
See the press release in the adjacent column for details. Read a page from the comic here.

The Nine Lives of I K Brunel

The ss Great Britain Trust has given the go ahead for the refit of the Maritime Heritage Centre beside the ss Great Britain to provide bespoke exhibition space that will be used for The Nine Lives of I K Brunel, a major exhibition which is expected to attract national interest as part of the Brunel 200 proramme. The exhibition’s title relates to Brunel’s many brushes with death as well as his many financial and engineering successes and failures. See press release for further details.

A Brunel Christmas to One and All



Brunel 200 has launched its Christmas message and card. Prepared by artist Simon Gurr, who is currently completing the Brunel comic – a 100 page graphic biography of the life and work of Brunel – the card depicts Brunel as a snowman, with the Clifton Suspension Bridge in the background, and the classic cigar replaced by a carrot. The message inside says:
 
Peace on Earth. Goodwill to all People
Like Brunel: demand the impossible in 2006
 
See press release for further details.

Bridge Competition Launched



The University of Bristol and New Civil Engineer magazine have launched a competition to design an innovative crossing to span the Avon Gorge using technologies, materials and methods of the modern-day and those anticipated over the next 50 years. The Clifton Crossing Competition, which is endorsed by the Royal Academy of Engineering, imagines that the Clifton Suspension Bridge had not been built. Professional engineers, engineering students and school pupils of all ages are challenged to bridge the gap.

Full brief and entry details available from 12 January 2006 on this website. Closing date for entries 9 April 2006. Prizes awarded July 2006. To register your interest now, email melanie@brunel200.com. See press release for further details.