CARLISLE is set to be transformed into a ‘City of Lights’ with historic landmarks illuminated as part of a four-day festival of love.

The extravaganza, from February 12 to February 15 incorporating Valentine’s Day celebrations, is intended to boost civic pride and celebrate the city’s heritage.

Under the plans, marriage proposals and other romantic messages would be projected onto the walls of Carlisle’s Castle.

And with next year being a leap year, a greater number of women are expected to take advantage of the eye-catching technology to pop the question.

Embracing the theme of ‘Love Carlisle’, the kaleidoscope of light and colour will be funded through £24,500 released from the 2019/19 underspend.

The idea comes on the back of a project that saw the Rickerby Park cenotaph lit up using LED colour-changing lights to mark the centenary of the armistice in November last year.

There was also a projected image of falling poppies onto the keep at Carlisle Castle which proved popular with the public.

Paul Musgrave, the county council’s area manager for Carlisle, said earlier light displays had been “extremely well-received by the public”, generating “unprecedented positive comments” on the authority’s social media feeds.

He said: “We want to use the built environment, particularly the heritage buildings and use intelligent colour-changing technology, some of which you saw last year but much more advanced.

“It will help the city centre and the people of Carlisle to see the buildings in a very different way.”

The festival will boast presentations around the Citadels, the railway station, the Old Town Hall, the Griffin, the Hallmark Hotel and the Castle.

The event will also see four groups of school pupils taking part in an interactive lighting competition, known as Nightgeist, based at Tullie House. A sound and light event will also be held in Carlisle Cathedral, making use of the architectural features inside the medieval landmark.

Retail and leisure sectors within the city will be encouraged to light up their own buildings and shop windows, using their imagination to show what Carlisle means to them.

Because some of these light installations will be permanent, it will also be possible to use them to mark future events across the city.

Ideas mooted at yesterday’s Local Committee for Carlisle included bathing buildings in a red glow to mark Remembrance Sunday or pink for Breast Cancer awareness.

The festival has already attracted interest from the private sector, with several sponsorship options under discussion.

The Railway Heritage Trust has given the county council some funding to help with light feature and installation at the station.

Meanwhile, Thorn Zumtabel has provided “many hours” of lighting design and equipment to support the event.

Councillor Elizabeth Mallinson described the initiative as “very interesting”, a “great thing for Carlisle” and would put the city on the map.