Portsmouth Cathedral lights up for Cathedrals at Night

Visit us for Cathedrals at Night; a new nationwide campaign invites visitors to the see historic and sacred space of Portsmouth Cathedral in a new light.

Portsmouth Cathedral will open after hours to welcome in visitors for free, part of the first coordinated nationwide Cathedrals at Night campaign in the UK. This year, Portsmouth Cathedral is joining other participating Church of England cathedrals and its partners to offer people a ‘Cathedral’s at Night’ experience where visitors of all ages can immerse themselves in the culture and spirituality of this beautiful building and enjoy a taste of cathedral life for free. 

Portsmouth Cathedral will open its doors on May 14 taking visitors on a journey from dusk to dawn. Starting in the St. Thomas Chapel, the oldest part of the Cathedral, visitors will be guided through the colours and sounds of early evening. Moving into the Baptistry, explorers will be immersed in starry night sky, finishing in the Nave with the emerging light of dawn. Using light, projection and sound, visitors will be able to enjoy the Cathedral in a whole new light with entry free to this unique experience. Cathedrals at Night will take place shortly after a reflective Taizé service at 5:45pm, which is open to all to attend.

The campaign, postponed from 2020 due to the pandemic, has been co-ordinated by the Association of English Cathedrals (AEC) and is the first nationwide project that brings together Church of England cathedrals, Westminster Abbey, Cathedral Isle of Man, and St Davids and St Asaph from the Church in Wales, around a single, simple campaign. 

It has been inspired by the European campaign, ‘Les Nuits des Cathedrales’ which was first launched in 2008 and sees participating European cathedrals open their doors after hours for free on the second Saturday in May. It is hoped Cathedrals at Night will become a regular date in the diary for English Cathedrals and their partners beyond 2022.

Portsmouth Cathedral joins other cathedrals also participating in this national event, including Bristol, Coventry, Derby, Ely, Exeter, Gloucester, Hereford, Lincoln, Cathedral Isle of Man, Salisbury (online only) York Minster, and St Davids from the Church in Wales, all opening alongside their European counterparts for a Cathedrals at Night experience on May 14.