Festivals and cultural events Picardy

Since 1991, every year since 1991, the Citadel has been abuzz with excitement. Together with the band La Citadelle, at carnival time, the festival La Citadelle en Bordées is the second highlight of the year for this sailors' district. In Dunkirk, the Citadel is surrounded by basins, it can only be accessed by bridges, so it is a sort of small "island" with a soul and is still very much dedicated to the economy of the port and the sea. This festival therefore logically resounds with sailors' songs, but also with folk, Celtic groups, blues, and French songs that are sometimes offbeat and humorous. At Les Bordées, you'll find people flitting from stage to stage (there are 10 of them!) and from café to café. And when it comes to bars and restaurants, there's plenty to choose from! In addition to these establishments that set up large tables outside, there is always the possibility of eating "a French fry", along the heritage ships of the Port Museum, strolling in the middle of an often compact crowd, especially at the Quai de la Citadelle, and being guided by the sound of the bands. The people of Dunkirk love this event and it's easy to see why. About twenty groups can be seen free of charge. Atmosphere until the end of the night!

It's the only book village north of Paris. In 2006, Esquelbecq took up the challenge of becoming a book village. All year round, the village offers a wide range of events, including a book market, literary aperitif, reading salon, meetings with authors and exhibitions. The highlight of the year is the Nuit des livres, a major event held every year on the first weekend in July. It will take place on July 6, 2024. Esquelbecq's exceptional setting, a blend of rurality and interesting architectural buildings (Hallekerke Saint-Folquin, château...), is in keeping with the ambitions of facilitating access to literary expression and culture for as many people as possible, but also with the promise of visiting a pretty corner of culture in Flanders. It's impossible not to fall under the spell of Esquelbecq, village of books and heritage. Christmas and book market on November 16 and 17, 2024. Book market every^3rd Sunday from September to May.Places to visit:

- Le Chef-d'oeuvre retrouvé

- Carpe Diem bookshop

- Books and you

Other establishments contribute to the cultural renown of this charming village:

- Les Gigottos Automates

- Brasserie Thiriez

- The castle

- The church

- Jean-Michel Devynck cultural center

Les Fenêtres qui parlent is a unifying and original event. Created in 2001, they enable neighborhood associations to express their stories and memories. As you can imagine, the windows of participating residents are decorated with drawings, paintings and messages... More than a simple event, these windows are an open door on local life and the dreams of residents, highlighted by regional artists. A surprise window is revealed after a tour of the partner towns. Each year, you'll have the pleasure of strolling new streets and discovering new neighborhoods in this amazing metropolis, through a variety of themes ("Micro Machine" in Lille-Sud, "Couples Improbables" in Roubaix, "Flottements" in Bois-Blancs, for example). A great initiative to liven up and showcase the many neighborhoods that deserve to be better known!

Unusual moments in perspective thanks to the open doors of the artists'workshops! The program? Visit the premises of a thousand amateur and professional artists from the North, be they painters, graphic artists, sculptors or photographers. You will discover in which space they work, which inspires them, with which materials, with which tools they create… Exciting and often enriching meetings on the works and artists themselves at the sharing workshops with the general public. A great opportunity to discover all these talents!

Since its inception, the NAME Festival has never ceased to reinvent itself and surprise us. A major event for electro-music fans, the festival takes over unusual venues (remnants, industrial wastelands...) and thrills its thousands of spectators to the sounds of internationally renowned artists and young emerging musicians. The NAME Festival is a talent scout and incubator, and organizes meetings and master classes. On the strength of its reputation, the festival has become an itinerant one, organizing events all over France.

The Braderie de l'Art is an unusual event organized by the Condition Publique in Roubaix. The concept? Dedicate a weekend to art and design recycling, bringing together the most inspired international designers (graphic artists, sculptors, graffiti artists...). Before the eyes of over 20,000 visitors each year, they use their talents to give a second life to countless obsolete objects through hyper-creative refurbishments and/or customizations. If you're there in December, you might just be able to treat yourself to one of their artistic reclaimed objects!

This is the not-to-be-missed event for all lovers of the ^9th art! On the initiative of the association On a marché sur la bulle (Tintin fans rejoice!), some one hundred authors meet at the Halle Freyssinet for workshops, screenings of live drawings, signings, events and conferences. For the ^25th edition, Cyril Pedrosa signed the poster. Exhibitions on Amiens Cathedral, the Musée de Picardie and Shinichi Ishizuka's Blue Giant manga marked the last edition of the festival.

Are you ready to dance? Enjoy the frenzied Afro-Latino rhythms! Rue de Metz and Place du Centenaire are in full swing. Classes, workshops and concerts keep the seaside resort lively late into the night. Dress codes are sometimes indicated. Enjoy the party!