Jorja Smith, Laura Mvula and UB40 will be among the acts performing at Monday’s Commonwealth Games Closing Ceremony, which will also include a nod to hit TV show Peaky Blinders.
The ceremony in Birmingham, which celebrates the West Midlands’ musical heritage, marks the end of 11 days of sporting action which saw 4,500 Commonwealth athletes compete in 19 sports and eight parasports.
Other acts performing at the Alexander Stadium event include Beverley Knight, Dexys Midnight Runners, Goldie and Musical Youth, best known for their 1982 hit Pass the Dutchie.
Acknowledging the cultural impact of Peaky Blinders – one of Birmingham’s biggest exports of the last decade – there will be a sequence from the theater show Peaky Blinders: The Redemption of Thomas Shelby, which has its world premiere in the city next month.
British singer Mvula will give a special performance of a newly commissioned track inspired by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds’ song Red Right Hand, which will be used as the TV series’ theme song.
Birmingham Games chief creative officer Martin Green said they wanted to put together a “spectacular” line-up of global artists from the West Midlands for an “exhilarating musical production” to close out the sporting event.
“The medley of quality performances will celebrate the vibrant energy and cultural heritage of this incredible city as we bring these spectacular home games to a fitting conclusion,” he added.
Boris Johnson said the games were a “shining example” of the power of sport in “strengthening the bonds between our unique partnership of Commonwealth nations”.
The Prime Minister hailed Birmingham as “a fantastic first-time host” and “cementing the UK’s well-deserved reputation as the host of major sporting events on the global stage”.
He also thanked the volunteers, the spectators and the athletes for making the Games “the best yet”.
Johnson added that the success of Birmingham 2022 “will not only be measured by medals won or records broken, but also by the number of people who are inspired to play sport, and who do so thanks to this government’s massive investment in grassroots sport will be able to do sport in recent years”.
He said the West Midlands would “reap the rewards of the enduring economic legacy” of the Games, which he added would “boost trade, jobs and growth across the region for a generation to come”.
The closing ceremony, which will be broadcast on BBC One and BBC iPlayer at 8pm, will include a formal handover to Australia’s state of Victoria, which is hosting the 2026 Commonwealth Games.