UoBe Festival 2022: what a ride!
From the Wellbeing Zone to the Winter Carnival, the annual festival provided the perfect opportunity to unwind and have fun before Semester Two.
We hope you enjoyed last week’s UoBe Festival activities as much as we did. Marking the week after the assessment period and before the beginning of Semester Two, this year’s Festival promised to be bigger and better than ever, and it sure did deliver.
It was great to be back in person, with over 280 campus and online activity sessions for you all to enjoy.
The week kicked off with the Campus Run which saw over 400 students and staff (and an appearance from Rory the Lion!) turn up to complete the fun 5K run in record times - congratulations to all those who took part!
Chancellor’s Court was transformed into ‘Festival Square’ which featured live student performances (including ValeFest’s Battle of the Bands), the popular Digbeth Dining Club and our Winter Carnival – unlimited free funfair rides for all. During the week, the Festival Marquee provided a space to chill out, show some gratitude and get cuddles from our furry friends at Pets as Therapy.
With over 15,000 attendees, there truly was something for everyone. It’s hard to pick just a few but some of our fave sessions also included:
- Learning to draw with the Barber Institute of Fine Arts
- ETextiles workshop on how to make an Old Joe canvas
- The Guild’s ‘Give it a Go’ Fair
- Watching the College Cup (congrats to the College of Life and Environmental Sciences – worthy winners!)
- Practicing mindfulness at the Wellbeing Quiet Space
- The Campus Treasure Hunt
- Pottery workshop at the Lapworth
- Online employability sessions
- Movie nights
- Learning basic life support.
Like last year, we also heard from industry experts and high-profile speakers including:
- Former England Women’s Rugby player Maggie Alphonsi, who spoke about creating a winning mindset,
- Bestselling author Helen Cooper who shared her journey of writing her first book and getting it published,
- And Professor Andrew Bagshaw and Dr Andrew Surtees who presented asleep masterclass, looking at the science of sleep and why it matters.
If you missed any of the headline speakers, don’t worry, you can watch them back here.
#JustBe…
In the run-up to the Festival, we asked you what you would like to #JustBe for 2022. We received so many fab submissions which were shared on social media and projected onto Old Joe (how cool!) at a special showcase event to launch the Festival. If you missed the projection showcase, watch it back here.
Re-live the magic
We hope you all had the best time at the 2022 UoBe Festival. We can’t wait to share our official highlights video with you – look out for it in the next Brum Bulletin. In the meantime, why not check out all the action on our @unibirmingham Instagram page or the hashtag #UoBeFestival
Check out the UoBe Festival highlights film to re-live the magic.
UoBe Festival highlights 1
UoBe Festival highlights 2