Birmingham and Frankfurt are launching a digital portal in Hippodrome Square, Southside, to mark 60 years of twinning between the two cities. The portal will open on Friday 23 October 2026 and run until 4 November.
The installation is a large digital screen housed inside a freight crate. It will enable residents in both cities to see, speak and engage with one another in real time through interactive sessions.
The Sister Cities Dialogue project links Frankfurt with three of its twin cities: Birmingham, Krakow in Poland, and Lviv in Ukraine. The concept allows people to walk into the portal and step into someone else's world by discovering common ground through conversation.
What's on and when
The portal is open Monday to Friday, 10am to 8pm. Free sessions range from street art and music history to coffee and cake, wine tasting, and conversations between communities in both cities.
A special launch event will take place at Hippodrome Square from 3.30pm on Friday 23 October, where the Lord Mayor of Birmingham, Cllr Zaker Choudhry, will officially open the portal.
Background
Birmingham has been twinned with Frankfurt since 1966. Councillor Deborah Harries, Cabinet Member for Culture, said the friendship has grown over 60 years through educational exchanges and cultural encounters, including the Frankfurt Christmas Market, which has run for 26 years.
Eileen O'Sullivan, Deputy Mayor for International Affairs of Frankfurt am Main, said the partnership has been part of Frankfurt's international identity for six decades and depends on people, not official agreements alone.
Full details of sessions from 23 October to 4 November are available on Frankfurt am Main's website — click the UK flag icon to translate the page into English.