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White text on a dark purple background reads
White text on a dark purple background reads

Our Freedom: Then & Now

A range of exciting events nationwide in celebration of the 80th anniversary of VE/VJ Day.

Our Freedom: Then & Now is a UK-wide, locally-led arts and creative programme reflecting what ‘Our Freedom’ means to local people and their communities, following the 80th anniversary of VE/VJ Day.

Future Arts Centres lead the programme, working with 60 arts centres and libraries, their communities and artists to create special cultural events, exhibitions and performances that are meaningful to people living in these places and across the UK.

Our Freedom: Then & Now

A busy café filled with people sitting at tables and chatting. White coffee cups sit on wooden tables between groups of people in colourful clothes. Some people wear orange jackets, green coats, and red tracksuits. Green plants hang from the ceiling above the crowd. A purple screen shows text in the background. The café has cream-coloured walls and bright lighting. People stand and sit throughout the space, creating a lively social atmosphere.
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A theatre stage with purple lighting shows two people standing at a podium. Behind them sits a large screen displaying
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A person in a dark suit and glasses stands at a podium with a microphone, holding papers and speaking. Behind them, large blue text reads
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Our Freedom in Washington

Step into a powerful evening of storytelling, music and visual art as Arts Centre Washington presents Unbound: Our Freedom Cabaret  – a live performance exploring the meaning of freedom.

Created by intergenerational community groups alongside theatre maker Liv Hunt, this unique multimedia production brings together voices from Washington Youth Theatre, Washington Young Film Makers, Right Track Young Musicians, Creative Age and Washington Community Podcasters. Through original theatre, live music, recorded oral histories and projections, the performance reflects on personal and collective ideas of freedom – then and now.

Developed in collaboration with local artists and heritage partners, the show draws on real stories and archival materials from Washington and Sunderland, weaving them into a vibrant, emotionally resonant experience.

Creative Team:
Director: Liv Hunt
Washinton Youth Theatre Lead: Mat Ems Hobbins
Right Track Leads: Tony Brown and Laura Taylor
Podcast Lead: Sarah Murray – NE Voice CIC
Washington Young Filmmakers Lead: Alastair Cummings
Producer: Rachel Hammer
With support from Matt Blyth and Dan Appleby
Lighting Designer: Duncan Allan

A workshop leader in a striped orange and purple top stands in front of four young people sitting on black plastic chairs in a hall. Black curtains hang behind them. The children wear casual clothes including t-shirts and jeans, and one wears glasses. A water bottle sits on the wooden floor.
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Young people sit in a circle on black chairs in a bright hall with wooden floors. A workshop leader in striped clothing stands in the centre. String lights hang from the white ceiling with blue lighting around the edges. More participants sit on wooden benches in the background.
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Four people play musical instruments together in a room with stone walls. One person with bright pink hair holds papers, whilst others play bass guitar and acoustic guitars. Red cables connect the instruments. Water bottles sit nearby on the wooden floor.
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Three young people perform a drama activity. Two stand on either side holding up a large white paper with drawings of a face and book. A third person kneels behind the paper, creating a puppet-like scene. Black chairs are arranged around them in the bright classroom.
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Young people stand in rough line in a room with dark floor against old stone walls. Red rope lies in patterns on the ground with yellow circles placed about. One young person in a dark stripey jumper and long curly hair is talking while holding the end of the red rope that is on the floor. The other young people wear casual clothes and observe. the scene looks to be a discussion or workshop.
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Three young people are sat in a line wearing party hats and mime eating food from empty party plates. Two other young people are sat facing them in the foreground. A final young person stands in the background, holding a white paper plate to cover their face and wear a red party hat. The scene looks to be an ad-hoc performance in front of a small audience.
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Young people are gathered around a table draped in a green cloth. one is sat to the left hand side and wearing denim. Two are to the right, one stood wearing light grey and the other wearing a dark t-shirt is sat with their hands behind their back. They are all looking at another young person sat behind the table wearing a crafted turban with red feathers hanging down to one side. Two people sit in chairs facing them. The scene looks to be an ad-hoc performance in front of a small audience.
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Two young people sit e at a table talking while a group of people are stood and seated facing forward watching them. The scene looks to be an ad-hoc performance in front of a small audience.
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Spotlight: Washington Open Exhibition 2025

Friday 14 November – Saturday 20 December 2025

Washington Open Exhibition shines a spotlight on the talented artists living and working in the region.

An open call invited applicants to creatively respond to the theme of Freedom both historically and in our lives today, inspired by the Our Freedom project, this theme asks profound questions:

  • How has freedom shaped our communities?
  • What happens when freedom is taken away?
  • How do we experience it now—and what does it mean for the future?

The work selected for the exhibition respond to these questions in powerful and diverse ways. From painting and sculpture to textiles, photography, and digital art, each piece offers a unique perspective on freedom—whether personal, political, social, or creative.

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A woman with a brown coat bending down and admiring artwork placed on a white block with lots of seashells on it.
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A man in a grey raincoat reading information about a small canvas in a black frame withlots of orange and green tones, in a white room
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A photo of an art gallery with lots of people in the background and lots of small framed photographs on a vintage wooden table on the left, and lots of old photobooks in a brown basket ina rocking chair is on the right
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An elderly man admiring an artwork with 4 pieces of wood and a description beneath them
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A busy art gallery with lots of people admiring a pink canvas
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An elderly man with a grey hat on admiring a canvas of a sleeping woman in a busy crowded white room with other pieces of art in the room
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A middle aged man wearing smart clothes and glasses talking into a microphone in a white room with paintings on the wall
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Unbound: Our Freedom Podcast

A logo with bold white text saying Unbound; our freedom project over a blue and red background

The Crocodile Collective have been out and about in Washington talking to people about what freedom means to them. Not the easiest question to answer when you’re put on the spot but given a moment or two there were lots of interesting answers. You can listen to the reflections and thoughts on freedom from people young and old(er) in the Our Freedom Unbound Podcast.

Unbound: Our Freedom Podcast coming to all podcasting platforms and You Tube soon.

Freedom Road

by Simon Armitage

UK Poet Laureate, Simon Armitage was commissioned by Future Arts Centres to write a poem as the centrepiece for the project. ‘Freedom Road’ will act as inspiration sparking exploration of what freedom has meant across generations and how it is felt and understood today. It will help to guide creative responses developed by local community groups as part of the project.

Read Freedom Road

The programme is delivered in partnership with Libraries Connected and Open Eye Gallery, supported using public funding by UK Government through Arts Council England.

Future Arts Centres
VE Day
Libraries Connected
Open Eye Gallery
Arts Council England logo
Funded by UK Government logo