Shown from 6pm to 11pm (GMT) every night on the Custom House, Greyfriars Tower and King’s Lynn Minster. New King’s Lynn projections celebrate the town’s maritime heritage and the anniversary of rejoining the Hanseatic League. Valentina Floris, Co-Director at the studio SDNA Ltd who created the moving projections, said: “For this project, we worked with over 180 people from King’s Lynn to reimagine the town’s maritime heritage through visual creation. Voyages reflect our ongoing interest in place, memory, and collective imagination. It celebrates King’s Lynn as a town shaped not only by its past, but by the creativity of its people today.” The Hanse Commissioner for England added: “King’s Lynn has a proud Hanseatic heritage that stretches back to the 13th century, This project has shined a spotlight on this rich local history, and King’s Lynn’s membership of the new league helps bring about closer economic, cultural, social and national ties with our Hanse partners across northern Europe.” The project was supported by Shared Prosperity Funding.

Motorboats race up to 100mph along the Ouse, in this high-octane two-day spectacle. Watch Europe’s biggest watersports festival from the historic waterfront of King’s Lynn.

The annual Hanse Day celebrations in King’s Lynn all began as we know it in 2009 when the Borough Council organised the town’s first ever Hanse Festival (four years after rejoining the Hanse League), and maritime merriment was had by all. During the festival weekend visitors enjoyed the sound of sea shanties and songs of the sea along the quayside, street theatre, an al fresco food fair, heritage walk and much more maritime merriment. The majestic Lisa von Lübeck, a 15th Century caravel reconstruction, cruised up the River Great Ouse from its port in Lübeck, Germany to greet the crowds on the King’s Lynn quayside.

True’s Yard Museum Date: Saturday 14th June 2025 Time: 10.30 – 17.30 Cost: Prices vary: see the Facebook page for details of how to book or scan the QR codes Lots of activities and events on offer! Come along to our Pirate Takeover in the morning – take on our pirate treasure quest, have a go at pirate crafts and activities and pop into the cottages to hear Pirates Love Underpants! Our lovely guide, Pat Fysh will be leading a maritime tour from 11am, starting at the Vancouver Statue and ending at True’s for tea. Just turn up on the day! Amber workshops will be going on across the day for those of you who fancy having a go at making amber jewellery – no experience required. And in the afternoon there will be a sea shanty festival. Join Stuart Green for a sea shanty workshop followed by a performance of well known sea shanties by the Blakeney Old Wild Rovers See our Facebook page for details of how to book or scan the QR codes.

Lynn Museum Date: Thursday 29th May 2025 Time: 10.00 – 16.00 Cost: Adults £3.00 Children (4-18) £2 Under 4s £0.50 Come and explore the history of King’s Lynn’s medieval port! Meet costumed sailors, learn about weapons and ship supplies, and make a craft to take home. Activities will take place between 10am-12.30pm and 1.30-4pm, with a break for lunch. Part of the King’s Lynn Hanse Festival celebrations. Adults £3, Children (4-18) £2, Under 4s 50p.

Lynn Museum Date: Thursday 15th May 2025 Time: 10.30 am – 11.30 am Cost: £0.50/ child Once a month, under 5s and their families are invited to explore Lynn Museum with a variety of activities, trails, songs, games and stories. These sessions have a different theme each month, and are specially designed for early years learning, allowing young children the chance to explore the museum in their own way. In May we will be celebrating King’s Lynn’s seafaring history and exploring the wonders of the ocean. Part of the King’s Lynn Hanse Festival celebrations. 50p per child, accompanying adults free. Booking is recommended.

Kit Hesketh-Harvey, much loved cabaret performer and local celebrity champion of the arts, was working on a new pilgrim route through Norfolk, taking in some of the county’s less visited villages and churches before he died in 2023. On Friday May 16, people are invited to follow the southerly stretch, starting at Ten Mile Bank and following the Ouse, first to Littleport and on to Ely, past the nature sanctuary that Kit was creating from an old gravel pit, and looking to be at Ely Cathedral in time for evensong. The Merchant and Pilgrim walk is in memory of Kit, and others loved and missed by our walkers, but also to mark a year of celebrations in King’s Lynn for the Hanseatic League, trade from which once made Lynn one of the most important ports in the country. This is a taste of the longer, 70 mile, “Merchants and Mindfulness” route which will be opened in the summer. Walkers are to meet at 10am at All Saints Church, Stoke Ferry, where The Lady Dannatt, HM Lord-Lieutenant of Norfolk, will launch our new route. You are advised to bring a packed lunch as opportunities for refreshments will be few along the route. Pilgrims on the walk of May 16 are asked to donate a minimum of 25 pounds towards the repairs of All Saints Church, Stoke Ferry. For details of shorter routes and all logistics, please contact: sarah.sands@me.com

All Saints Church, North Runcton Date: Saturday 10th May 2025 Time: 10.00 am – 1.00 pm Cost: £15/ person Application deadline: Thursday 1st May as places are limited. Calling all history lovers! If you would like to learn more about the life and achievements of local architect, the “ingenious” HENRY BELL there is an opportunity to join a HENRY BELL TOUR in conjunction with historian Dr Paul Richards on: SATURDAY 10th May 2025 The tour will start at All Saints’ Church North Runcton at 10:00am, then will move to another Bell building, the Duke’s Head in King’s Lynn where parking is reserved and tea and coffee will be available. The tour then follows a route consisting of Bell history, finishing at the Minster at 1:00pm.

Lynn Museum Date: Friday 25th April 2025 Time: 2.00 pm – 3 pm Cost: £2.00 (FREE for NMS Passholders) Kings Lynn was in the premier league of English port towns up to around 1800. Its geographical position on the east coast facing Europe combined with an extensive hinterland via the Great Ouse ensured a degree of prosperity. Today it ranks amongst England’s smaller ports but still plays a role in keeping Britain trading. This talk is celebrating Dr Paul Richards newest publication ‘King’s Lynn: A Potted History’. Copies of the book will be on sale on the day, and Dr Richards will be available at the end of the talk to sign copies. £2 per person, free for NMS Passholders.

Launch Event Date: Friday 28th March 2025 Time: 4.00pm – 4.30pm Location: Under the Old Sunway Bridge on Broad Street, King’s Lynn town centre PE30 1DP Following on from very well attended local community and school art workshops across February and March 2025, local artist Kayleigh Wood is creating two large street art Hanse-related murals inspired by maritime paintings and drawings created with great enthusiasm and pride by our town’s young artists. Each of these two vibrant murals, celebrating the town’s Hanseatic and maritime culture and rich heritage, shall be positioned on the north and south sides of the Old Sunway Bridge – which will attract the eye of the local community and visitors from afar. Meet the creative team of the project at the overhead bridge site on Broad Street on the afternoon of Friday 28th March between 4pm-4.30pm to find out a lot more about the Hanse mural project’s aims, all supported by the Love Your Town Grant Scheme and the Tourism department of the Borough Council of King’s Lynn & West Norfolk.

The second event of the ‘HANSA20’ 2025 programme of west Norfolk maritime and Hanseatic heritage events, children are invited to create colourful seafaring-inspired artworks during this playful workshop with local artist Kayleigh Wood. Ages 2–16yrs. As part of the HANSA20 celebrations of King’s Lynn’s historic Hanse shipping connections and cross-sea friendship, this walk-in workshop will engage and inspire the creativity of children of all ages. Join the workshop in The Place at any time from 10am-4pm. Simply walk in! See you there, me hearties!

The first event of the ‘HANSA20’ 2025 programme of west Norfolk maritime and Hanseatic heritage events, this talk explores the Manby family of the local village of Hilgay and their renowned maritime history. Despite being inland, the small Norfolk village of Hilgay has had a significant influence on the maritime history of the county in the form of two of its most eminent sons – Captain George William Manby and his younger brother Vice-Admiral Thomas Pepper Manby of Wood Hall Manor. Our talk will explore the fascinating lives and exploits of the Manby brothers who put Hilgay on the maritime map, each in his own unique way. From Lynn to Labrador and from Fenland to Greenland we will follow them on their journeys to fame if not fortune.

The New Hanse League is an active network of towns and cities across Europe, which historically belonged to the association of merchant towns known as the Hanseatic League. The original medieval Hanseatic League, which comprised a group of towns around the Baltic and the North Sea, was an extremely influential trading association and was very much a part of King’s Lynn’s development and historic past.