Free Bilston Market celebration brings chef demos to...

Contents

Saturday celebration follows Thursday’s first trading day
Glynn Purnell, K-Pop and a mini food festival
What visitors can expect at the new market
Time, cost and regular market hours

The new Bilston outdoor market will mark its official opening with a free family celebration on Saturday 11 July, bringing cooking demonstrations, performances and children’s activities into the redeveloped market space.

The Bilston Market Official Opening Celebration runs from 10am to 3pm at Bilston outdoor market in Bilston, Wolverhampton. Entry is free, and the day is aimed at families, shoppers and residents who want to see the new market after its multi-million pound redevelopment.

Celebrity chef Glynn Purnell is the special guest and will deliver cooking demonstrations during the event. Dicky Dodd will host the day, which City of Wolverhampton Council says will be the first use of the market’s new flexible events space.

Saturday celebration follows Thursday’s first trading day

Traders are due to welcome customers into the new-look Bilston outdoor market from 8am on Thursday 2 July, after contractor Speller Metcalfe formally handed the site back to City of Wolverhampton Council last week.

The official opening celebration comes just over a week later, on Saturday 11 July, giving regular shoppers and first-time visitors a chance to see how the site has changed beyond the trading stalls.

More than £8 million has been invested in the redevelopment through Government and council funding. The market now has a purpose-built canopy designed to give better protection in bad weather, alongside easier access, upgraded toilets, enhanced stalls, new signage, taxi drop off and public areas.

For readers planning the wider day out, this Bilston Market opening guide sets out the confirmed date, cost and market details in one place.

Glynn Purnell, K-Pop and a mini food festival

The July 11 programme is built around a busy market-day atmosphere rather than a formal civic ceremony. Alongside Glynn Purnell’s cooking demonstrations, the council has confirmed K-Pop performances, a circus show and demonstration, Caribbean dance performances, singers and a mini food festival.

Children’s activities are also part of the schedule, including craft workshops, sandpits, a colouring area, face painters and balloon modelling. A dragon walkabout character is also listed for the event.

Free market goodybags will be available while stocks last. No booking requirement has been stated in the source information, so the confirmed entry position is free admission.

What visitors can expect at the new market

Bilston Market’s redevelopment is intended to return traders to a modernised outdoor home after their period on the high street. The new canopy is one of the most visible changes, but the works also cover the facilities and circulation around the site.

Julie Emery of JD Produce, a Bilston outdoor market trader selling fruit and vegetables, said she was excited to move into the “fabulous new market” after the time on the high street. She said the new site was looking great and that traders had heard positive comments from the public ahead of the return.

Council leader Stephen Simkins described Thursday 2 July as a milestone day for Bilston, saying traders would welcome customers to their brand new market for the first time. Councillor Qaiser Azeem, the council’s Cabinet Member for Resident Services, also thanked outdoor and indoor traders for their support and patience during the redevelopment works.

The council has described the market project as the first phase of wider investment in Bilston, with further work listed around the Black Country Route public realm improvements, the High Street Link scheme, a £20 million Pride in Place programme and a new Health and Wellbeing facility next to the leisure centre.

Time, cost and regular market hours

The official opening celebration takes place at Bilston outdoor market on Saturday 11 July from 10am to 3pm. Entry is free, and the confirmed programme includes food, performances, craft activities and market stalls.

The new Bilston outdoor market opens for normal trading from Thursday 2 July at 8am. Its regular opening times are Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, from 8am to 4pm each day.

Source: City of Wolverhampton Council