A journalist, who played a key role in charting the major resurgence and impact of the cityâs Freemen across the last 15 years, has stepped down as press officer. George Oliver first retired in 2009 after 17 years as Durham Constabularyâs press and public relations manager after a career which started in the autumn of 1963.
On 2nd February 2026, two new Freemen were officially inducted during the Candlemas Guild Day ceremony. The honourees, Dave Cummings and Peter Carr, were sworn in amidst celebrations recognizing their contributions and dedication.
âCelebrating Excellence, Investing in the Futureâ. What are the Awards?The Durham City Freemen Apprentice Awards recognise apprentices who demonstrate outstanding skills, excellence, knowledge, and commitment to their chosen trade within the City of Durham. Why nominate?⢠Celebrate your apprentices’ achievements and raise the profile of your business.⢠Shine a spotlight on the quality of training […]
Durham City Remembrance was I believe the best we have produced for Durham City, and this is in no small part due to financial and logistical support of many people and organizations in and around Durham such as yourselves.
TWO time-served craftsmen, whose working lives followed different courses, discovered they unwittingly shared a common bond shortly before being sworn in as freemen at Novemberâs Guild Day in the Town Hall Gary Wilkinson, who became a member of the Joinersâs Company, has been a key player in the multi-million-pound rescue of the Durham Minersâ Hall […]
I’m excited to share some highlights from the recent major restoration of Durham Town Hall. As many of you know, the town hall closed in November 2024 to allow for an extensive programme of repairs and conservationâpart of a broader initiative that originally began during the COVID-19 lockdowns of 2020â21. This vital work included a […]
A Durham-based charitable hub â one of four regional centres offering trainees from the margins of society the chance of advancement by learning new skills – is expanding its operation thanks to a gift from ancient trade guilds of the cityâs freemen. For nearly fifteen years Handcrafted Projects has, from their Langley Moor skill and […]
A GREAT grandmother, believed to be the oldest woman freeman in Britain, has died peacefully just days short of her of her 104th birthday. But her trip was brought about by pure chance â the result of a north east ancestry search carried out by her son Ian, a Durham University graduate. During the trawl […]
SENIOR members of Durham City Freemen will this year take part, for the first time, in a country-wide event celebrating Englandâs âfantastic heritage and culture.â Wardens and deputy wardens, from the freemenâs eight surviving craft guilds formed at the end of the Middle Ages, will be available across four days in mid-September will meet members […]
THE world of high finance and artistic exercise, performed within a loop suspended from a ceiling, are unlikely bedfellows. But they both feature in the life of insurance specialist Daryl Metcalf â the freemenâs latest new recruit, where she joins dad Alan in the Cordwainersâ Guild Thirty-one-year-old Daryl, born in Esh Winning and educated at […]