For some, the whole project was supposed to be a celebration of Britain’s departure from the EU. Which means there is more than a little irony in the fact a main concern of the “festival of Brexit” organisers was the impact of leaving itself.
Disruption to the supply of workers and materials, as well as increased costs, emerged as one of the risks overshadowing the project, according to records.
The £120m festival was controversial from the moment it was first announced by Theresa May in 2018, but this week was in the firing line once again after the spending watchdog said it is investigating – after a series of rebrandings – Unboxed: Creativity in the UK amid concern visitor numbers were less than 1% of early targets.