30 things to celebrate in Sunderland's time as a city

30 things to celebrate in Sunderland's time as a city Sunderland has had many things to celebrate since it was awarded city status.

To mark the city's 30th birthday, we've compiled a list of 30 of our favourite moments and events. Take a trip down memory lane and see if there's any that ring a bell, or see if there are any others that spring to mind.

1. Concerts at the Stadium of Light

Many big names have performed at the iconic Stadium of Light since Oasis played the first concert there in 2009, other artists include Beyonce, Rihanna and One Direction.

2. Finalist for World Smart City Award

Sunderland was the only shortlisted UK finalist at the World Smart City Awards 2021, which catalysed Sunderland's status as one of the UK's leading smart cities.

3. Tall ships 2018

The spectacular event featured more than 50 ships from 16 countries and attracted 1.2 million people.

4. Shortlisted for UK City of Culture

Sunderland announced in 2015 that it would be bidding to be UK City of Culture 2021. The city successfully made the shortlist for the prestigious award but was pipped at the post by Coventry.

5. University of Sunderland is born In 1992, Sunderland Polytechnic was granted university status.

In July 2019 singer and songwriter Emeli Sandé was officially named as the University's new Chancellor.

6. West End Shows at Sunderland Empire

The biggest theatre in the North East, Sunderland Empire has hosted some spectacular shows including Disney's The Lion King, Wicked and Matilda the Musical.

7. Metro extended to Sunderland In 2002

The Metro was extended to Sunderland, with 8 stations either being purpose built or rebuilt to service the new line.

8. Stadium of Light opening

The Stadium of Light opened in 1997, with the first game being a friendly against Dutch side Ajax. The capacity of the stadium was expanded to 49,000 in 2002.

9. Northern Spire

The impressive Northern Spire opened in 2018. The pylon is twice as high as Gateshead's Millennium Bridge and taller than Big Ben's clock tower.

10. SAFC promoted from League 1

After 4 years in the third tier of English football, Sunderland AFC were promoted back to the Championship with victory over Wycombe at Wembley.

11. Nissan begins mass production of Leaf

Nissan has been a manufacturing heavy weight in the UK for over 35 years and has produced more than 10 million cars. In 2013 it began building the Nissan Leaf, one of the first mass-produced electric vehicles in the world.

12. Regeneration of the former Vaux site

Having stood empty since the closure of Vaux Brewery in 1999, the site is being regenerated through the Riverside Sunderland project, that will transform a 32-hectare site in the heart of the city into a dynamic, carbon-neutral urban quarter.

13. Queen and Duke of Edinburgh visit to mark year of city status

The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh visited the city in 1993 to mark one year since it gained city status. As part of the visit, the royal couple officially unveiled the city's new coat of arms.

14. Sunderland Illuminations

The history of Sunderland Illuminations can be traced back more than 80 years and it has been a popular event since it returned in 2012.

15. Royal visit for the Opening of The Fire Station

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge officially opened the new £3.5m arts venue The Fire Station in 2018.

16. SAFC break 'Wembley curse'

After 48 years and seven defeats, Sunderland finally broke their Wembley curse with victory in the 2021 Papa John's Trophy final.

17. BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend

Herrington Country Park hosted BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend in 2005, artists performing included Foo Fighters, The Black Eyed Peas and Gwen Stefani.

18. Opening of National Glass Centre

Sunderland's rich glass making heritage was recognised in 1998 with the opening of National Glass Centre.

19. Work begins on new Sunderland Train Station

Work began in April 2022 on the first phase of a game-changing project that will create an attractive new entrance point to Sunderland, marking the start of a scheme to completely revamp the transport hub.

20. Sunderland City Runs

The first Sunderland city 10km was held in 2011 with just over 1,500 people taking part. Ten years later the Sunderland City Runs welcomed 4000 participants to the city streets in a celebration of running across a range of distances.

21. Development of Park Lane

A new transport hub for the city opened in 1999 and it was connected to the Metro line 3 years later. In 2016, Sunderland College opened a new £29m campus at Park Lane.

22. International Advanced Manufacturing Park (IAMP)

A unique public/private partnership between South Tyneside and Sunderland City Councils and HBD, IAMP is delivering a world-class fully serviced manufacturing park with a pipeline of skilled employees trained to the needs of businesses now and in the future.

23. Doxford International Business Park

The first buildings on the 125-acre business park opened in 1992, with companies such as EE, EDF and Nike having offices on the site.

24. Sunderland Til I Die

The fly on the wall documentary captured the attention of the nation, with seemingly everyone talking about the club and the city thanks to the Netflix show.

25. Seafront regeneration

Sunderland seafront has been undergoing a make-over in recent times, with developments of the promenade, pier point and the STACK changing the look and feel of the area.

26. Three Lions at the Stadium of Light

England's men's team have visited the Stadium of Light three times and have a 100% record with wins over Belgium, Turkey and Australia.

27. Queen visits for Diamond Jubilee

Sunderland was the first North East stop on the Queen's Diamond Jubilee tour in 2012 when she visited Port of Sunderland.

28. Opening of Niall Quinn Children's Centre

The Niall Quinn Children's Children Centre is the children's outpatient department at Sunderland Royal Hospital. It was named after the SAFC legend following his donation of £500,000 from his testimonial match in 2002.

29. Royal opening of Winter Gardens

The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh were also in Sunderland to officially open the Winter Gardens in 2002, the new centre replaced the one destroyed during a World War II bombing raid.

30. Opening of Sunderland Aquatics Centre

The only Olympic-sized swimming pool between Leeds and Glasgow opened in 2008, it received a 'second opening' when Princess Anne visited.