Events - Supporting

Hoppy Birthday, Bristol!

650 tile hopscotches have appeared throughout the city centre’s green spaces to turn the summer holidays into one long playtime

25/07/2023

BID Lead

Vicky Lee

Email Vicky Lee

City transformed into giant playground to celebrate its 650th anniversary with huge hopscotches.

A giant hopscotch trail celebrating Bristol’s 650th anniversary as a city has hopped into parks and green spaces throughout the city centre this summer, currently being refreshed and ready to play on again from Friday 11th August.

Brought to life by the teams at Bristol City Centre BID and Upfest, in partnership with Visit Bristol and Bristol 650 the colossal artworks will take Bristolians back to their childhood, delighting those both young and young at heart.

The concept has arrived in Bristol and colourful bean bags are available for the ultimate playground throwback where players can set targets, throw the bags and move towards the tile. Offering a free activity for families throughout the school holidays, visitors are encouraged to use the tiles to get creative with their own games as well as the traditional hopscotch.

Three 650 tile hopscotch locations are planned, in Queen Square, Castle Park and College Green. Sprayed onto the grass in these iconic green spaces, each hopscotch will incorporate 650 individual tiles and also be brought to life in the shape of the numbers: 6 5 0.

The numbers signify Bristol’s 650th year as a city. It has been 650 years since King Edward III granted important rights and privileges to Bristol by royal charter in 1373. Until this time, Bristol was divided geographically and administratively by the River Avon. The charter of 1373 gave Bristol and its suburbs jurisdiction independent from other county authorities, making it a county in its own right. Since then, Bristol has developed its own unmistakable identity, carved out by passionate locals and spirited fans, with art and culture at its core for generations.

Vicky Lee, Head of Bristol City Centre BID said:

“Creating reasons to spend leisure time in our city is a core focus for the City Centre Business Improvement District, attracting footfall and supporting revenue for our levy paying businesses, all the while creating experiences and reasons for residents and tourists to visit the city centre. With the summer holidays just around the corner, we’ve introduced hopscotch to our green spaces as a free-to-attend and must-do summer activity for families. Hopscotchers can enjoy the unique installation and then take a look around all of the fantastic retail and hospitality businesses nearby. We’re looking forward to transforming our city into a giant playground and see Bristolians come together, say Happy Birthday to Bristol and celebrate as a city - supporting our local businesses in the process.”

The trail is being refreshed in the city’s green spaces and will be available to use once more from 11th August for the rest of the summer holidays.

Featured Media Articles

Read about our 650 hopscotch project in the following media articles.

BBC News

Giant hopscotch pitch painted in Bristol city centre

Read The Article Here

Bristol 24/7

GIANT HOPSCOTCH INSTALLATIONS APPEAR IN CITY CENTRE PARKS

Read The Article Here

Secret Bristol

Three Colossal Hopscotch Courts Have Popped Up Around Bristol’s Green Spaces

Read The Article Here

Visit Bristol

650 Hopscotch

Read The Article Here

Visit West

Hoppy Birthday, Bristol! City to transform into giant playground to celebrate its 650th anniversary with huge hopscotches

Read The Article Here

Evening Standard