Carlisle Cathedral celebrates 900th anniversary with star-gazing installation

Visitors are being urged to sit back, relax and look up. Credit: ITV Border

A major summer art installation celebrating the 900th anniversary of Carlisle Cathedral is being launched this month.

Rest Under the Stars will see visitors relaxing on deckchairs in part of the Cathedral while admiring the stars on its world-famous painted ceiling.

Headphones with specially-created soundscapes will add to the restful atmosphere of the event, which is one of the highlights of a year-long celebration during 2022 to mark 900 years since the foundation of Carlisle Cathedral.

The Cathedral has partnered with Carlisle-based charity Prism Arts to create the installation, which opens to visitors on Thursday 28 July and runs until Friday 2 September.

It is a free event with tickets for the 45-minute slots available to pre-book in advance or as walk-ins on the day.

The Revd Canon Dr Benjamin Carter said: "Rest Under the Stars offers people an opportunity to find rest among the busyness of daily life, which is something the Cathedral has offered to Carlisle and its diocese throughout its history."

Carlisle Cathedral set to celebrate 900 years of history