YOU ARE HERE: NOVUM
Part of NOVUM Summer Festival (7–9 August)
A three-day takeover of culture, play and entertainment across Newcastle city centre.
NOVUM is programmed and funded by Newcastle City Council
and supported using funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England
YOU ARE HERE: NOVUM
THE CITY IS THE STAGE. YOU ARE THE STORY.
Pop on a headset. Step into the story.
Part performance. Part audio trail. Part live encounter.
Stories unfold as you move through the city.
WHAT IS IT?
You Are Here: NOVUM can be experienced in a few ways…
A GUIDED EXPERIENCE
Walk the city together with a performer-guide.
You’ll be given a pair of wireless headphones (think silent disco vibes), so you don’t need to bring anything.
Part headphone experience. Part live performance. Part guided walk through the city.
A DIGITAL AUDIO TRAIL
Stories appear around you through headphones.
A SELF-LED VERSION
Explore the trail in your own time, at your own pace.
Free to take part.
Booking details coming soon.
WHAT IT IS
Immersive audio + live performance experience
WHEN IT’S HAPPENING
7–9 August 2026
Part of NOVUM Summer Festival 2026
WHERE TO FIND IT
Newcastle city centre
Starting point shared before your visit
WHEN
NOVUM Festival 2026
HOW LONG IT LASTS
Around 45 minutes (guided experience)
Free to take part.
Booking details coming soon.
THE LATE SHOWS: POP-UP
YOU ARE HERE
(GRAINGER UNPLUGGED)
One night. One corner of the city. Come find us.
This is where it begins.
We’re kicking things off with the first of a series of public drop-ins.
A chance to step into the world of You Are Here and help shape what it becomes.
Come find us. Drop in and explore a glimpse of the experience at this year’s Late Shows.
Share a memory, add something to the map, or take on a late-night photo mission around the market.
We’re gathering stories, voices and moments. The small things, the big things, and everything in between. All helping to build the trail.
Expect a bit of nostalgia, a bit of curiosity… and a hint of what’s to come.
Grainger Market
Late Shows — Saturday 9 May, 6PM–10PM
→ DROP IN ANYTIME / STAY AS LONG AS YOU LIKE
You Are Here: NOVUM is created and produced by The Six Twenty.
CREATIVE TEAM & Collaborators
Creative Direction
Melanie Rashbrooke
Producer & Community Co-ordination
Steven Blackshaw
Audio & Community Collaboration
Emily Toth
Sound & Composition
Calum Howard
Video & Digital
Merlin Mee
Photography & Filming
Von Fox & Merlin Mee
WITH THANKS
To the people and communities across Newcastle who’ve helped make this possible.
You Are Here: NOVUM is part of our wider You Are Here trails projects. Part of an ongoing series of You Are Here projects exploring cities and towns through story, sound and people. Made with communities.
WHEN & WHERE
7–9 August 2026
PART OF NOVUM SUMMER FESTIVAL 2026
Across Newcastle city centre
Starting points shared before your visit
Some things you’ll need to find.
Others will find you.
HOW IT WORKS.
What actually happens.
-
ARRIVE.
Head to Grainger Market. Collect your headset. Meet your guide.
-
TUNE IN.
The audio begins. The city shifts.
-
WALK.
Follow the route. Stories unfold around you.
-
YOU ARE HERE.
The map changes. You’re part of it now.
A PLAYABLE CITY. A STORY YOU WALK THROUGH.
WHAT TO EXPECT.
PUT YOUR HEADPHONES ON.
LET THE CITY SURPRISE YOU.
You Are Here: NOVUM invites you into a living, playable map of Newcastle.
Guided by a live performer and listening through silent disco headsets, you’ll wander through streets you think you know. Only to find they’ve been quietly holding onto something else.
A voice in your ear.
A moment you didn’t expect.
A place you’ve passed a hundred times, suddenly different.
Voices, sounds and stories unfold around you.
Familiar places shift.
The city reveals itself differently.
Along the way, local voices, music and storytelling weave together with live encounters. From scran spots and late nights to hidden histories and everyday memories.
You’ll meet your performer-guide, then set off together as a location-responsive soundscape unfolds around you.
WAYS TO EXPERIENCE IT
🎧 GUIDED EXPERIENCE
Join a small group led by a live performer. A shared journey through the city, part audio, part theatre, part exploration.
📱 SELF-LED TRAIL (COMING AUGUST 2026)
Explore in your own time, at your own pace through a digital version on your phone.
Follow your curiosity. Choose your own path through the city.
Stay with a story or skip ahead.
Follow your curiosity. A choose-your-own-adventure through the city centre.
WHO IT’S FOR.
You Are Here is open to everyone.
It’s designed for curious people of all ages. Whether you’re coming on your own, with friends or as part of a group.
The experience is best suited to older children, young people and adults.
Children under 16 should attend with an adult.
GOOD TO KNOW.
This is a walking experience through the city.
You’ll be on your feet for around 40 minutes, moving through public spaces.
Wear comfortable shoes and dress for the weather — this is Newcastle, after all.
Routes are designed to be as accessible as possible, but may include uneven surfaces, steps or busy areas.
CO-CREATED WITH YOU
This project is being built with people across Newcastle.
We’re gathering stories, memories and moments that make the city what it is. From scran and favourite spots to nights out, hidden corners and things that might or might not be true.
That might look like:
» favourite places and everyday icons
» scran and go-to food spots
» music, nights out and city memories
» finding your people
» hidden corners and overlooked places
» strange stories, myths and local legends
Sessions are relaxed and informal, shaped around the people in the room.
Sometimes we chat.
Sometimes we map memories.
Sometimes we record.
Sometimes we just listen.
Take part as much or as little as you like.
These stories shape the trail. Building a living map of the city that continues to grow over time.
GET INVOLVED
We’re looking for groups and individuals to take part. Drop Steven a message to find out more.
EXPLORE THE TRAIL
This is where the trail lives. A self-guided version you can explore in your own time, at your own pace.
Follow a story.
Wander off.
Come back later.
A digital rabbit hole of stories, voices and moments from across the city.
Part audio trail, part choose-your-own-adventure.
TAKE THIS FURTHER
You Are Here is an evolving series of audio and theatre trails created with communities. The first version was developed in Sunderland with the Sunderland Youth Council and Historic England.
You Are Here: NOVUM is the next step.
Each version of You Are Here grows from the stories of a specific community, whether that’s a city, a town, a neighbourhood or even a single street. Together, they form a growing map of places, voices and lived experience.
→ Bring this to your place
→ Interested in creating a trail with us? Get in touch
TRAIL IN A BOX
We’re also developing ways to experience You Are Here beyond the city itself.
Including portable versions of the trail designed for schools, communities and shared spaces — bringing stories, sound and place-based exploration into new settings.
If you’re interested in exploring this with us, we’d love to hear from you.
what people say
You think you know Newcastle… but give us around 40 minutes and we might change your mind.
— Melanie (The Six Twenty)
THIS ISN’T A TOUR. IT’S A STORY YOU STEP INTO.
JOIN US AT NOVUM FESTIVAL THIS SUMMER.
WALK. LISTEN. NOTICE. REPEAT.
WALK. LISTEN. NOTICE. REPEAT.
The people shaping the trail.
Made with people across the city. Here are some of the people helping bring the trail to life.
You Are Here: NOVUM is being shaped with people across Newcastle.
Their stories, ideas and voices are part of what you’ll experience.
MEET THE TEAM.
Melanie
CRAIG
STEVEN
CALUM
EMILY
MERLIN
TJMOV
