Tale of two cities: Capitals of Culture 2008
Conceived as a means of bringing citizens closer together European City of Culture was launched on 13 June 1985 by the European Council of Ministers on the initiative of Greek Minister of Culture, Melina Mercouri. That year Athens was chosen as the city for this prestigious event and a long list of others followed. The concept, rules and title were revisited and in 1999 European City of Culture was changed to European Capital of Culture. In 2005 the Irish…