Nottingham (/ˈnɒtɪŋəm/ (listen) NOT-ing-əm) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, England, 128 miles (206 km) north of London, 45 miles (72 km) northeast of Birmingham and 56 miles (90 km) southeast of Manchester, in the East Midlands.

Nottingham has links to the legend of Robin Hood and to the lace-making, bicycle (notably Raleigh bikes), and tobacco industries. It was granted its city charter in 1897 as part of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee celebrations. Nottingham is a tourist destination; in 2011, visitors spent over £1.5 billion—the thirteenth-highest amount in England's 111 statistical territories.^[8]

In 2017, Nottingham had an estimated population of 329,200.^[9] The population of the city proper, compared to its regional counterparts, has been attributed to its historical and tightly-drawn city boundaries.^[10] The wider conurbation, which includes many of the city's suburbs, has a population of 768,638.^[11] It is the largest urban area in the East Midlands and the second-largest in The Midlands. Its Functional Urban Area,^[12] also the largest in the East Midlands, has a population of 912,482.^[13] The population of the Nottingham/Derby metropolitan area is estimated to be 1,610,000.^[6] Its metropolitan economy is the seventh largest in the United Kingdom with a GDP of $50.9bn (2014).^[14] The city was the first in the East Midlands to be ranked as a sufficiency-level world city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network.^[15]

Nottingham has an award-winning public transport system,^[16] including the largest publicly owned bus network in England^[17] and is also served by Nottingham railway station and the modern Nottingham Express Transit tram system. To the west lies Derby, separated from it by the M1 motorway that cuts through.

It is also a major sporting centre, and in October 2015, was named 'Home of English Sport'.^[18] The National Ice Centre, Holme Pierrepont National Watersports Centre, and Trent Bridge international cricket ground are all based in or around the city, which is also the home of two professional football teams; the former world's oldest professional league club Notts County, and Nottingham Forest, famously two-time winners of the UEFA European Cup under Brian Clough and Peter Taylor in 1979 and 1980. The city also has professional rugby, ice hockey and cricket teams, and the Aegon Nottingham Open, an international tennis tournament on the ATP and WTA tours. This accolade came just over a year after Nottingham was named as the UK's first City of Football.^[19]

On 11 December 2015, Nottingham was named a "City of Literature" by UNESCO, joining Dublin, Edinburgh, Melbourne and Prague as one of only a handful in the world.^[20] The title reflects Nottingham's literary heritage, with Lord Byron, D. H. Lawrence and Alan Sillitoe having links to the city, as well as a contemporary literary community, a publishing industry and a poetry scene.^[21]

The city is home to two universities - Nottingham Trent University and the University of Nottingham and also hosts a campus of the University of Law.

The settlement may predate Anglo-Saxon times, as hinted at in a Welsh tradition of an earlier Brythonic name being Tig Guocobauc, meaning Place of Caves (known also as "City of Caves"). In modern Welsh it is known poetically as Y Ty Ogofog and Irish as Na Tithe Uaimh "The Cavey Dwelling".^[22] When it fell under the rule of a Saxon chieftain named Snot it became known as "Snotingaham"; the homestead of Snot's people (-inga = the people of; -ham = homestead).^[23] Some authors derive "Nottingham" from Snottenga, caves, and ham, but "this has nothing to do with the English form".^[24]

Nottingham Castle was constructed in 1068 on a sandstone outcrop by the River Leen. The Anglo-Saxon settlement was originally confined to the area today known as the Lace Market and was surrounded by a substantial defensive ditch and rampart, which fell out of use following the Norman Conquest and was filled by the time of the Domesday Survey (1086).^[25] Following the Norman Conquest the Saxon settlement developed into the English Borough of Nottingham and housed a Town Hall and Law Courts. A settlement also developed around the castle on the hill opposite and was the French borough supporting the Normans in the castle. Eventually, the space between was built on as the town grew and the Old Market Square became the focus of Nottingham several centuries later.^[25] Defences, consisted initially of a ditch and bank in the early 12th century. The ditch was later widened, in the mid-13th century, and a stone wall built around much of the perimeter of the town. A short length of the wall survives, and is visible at the northern end of Maid Marian Way, and is protected as a Scheduled Monument.^[25]

On the return of Richard the Lionheart from the Crusades, the castle was occupied by supporters of Prince John, including the Sheriff of Nottingham. It was besieged by Richard and, after a sharp conflict, was captured.^[26] In the legends of Robin Hood, Nottingham Castle is the scene of the final showdown between the Sheriff and the hero outlaw.^[27]

By the 15th century Nottingham had established itself as a centre of a thriving export trade in religious sculpture made from Nottingham alabaster.^[28] The town became a county corporate in 1449^[29] giving it effective self-government, in the words of the charter, "for eternity". The Castle and Shire Hall were expressly excluded and remained as detached Parishes of Nottinghamshire.

One of those highly impressed by Nottingham in the late 18th century was the German traveller C. P. Moritz, who wrote in 1782, "Of all the towns I have seen outside London, Nottingham is the loveliest and neatest. Everything had a modern look, and a large space in the centre was hardly less handsome than a London square. A charming footpath leads over the fields to the highway, where a bridge spans the Trent. … Nottingham … with its high houses, red roofs and church steeples, looks excellent from a distance."^[30]

During the Industrial Revolution, much of Nottingham's prosperity was founded on the textile industry; in particular, the city became an internationally important centre of lace manufacture. In 1831 citizens rioted in protest against the Duke of Newcastle's opposition to the Reform Act 1832, setting fire to his residence, Nottingham Castle.

In common with the UK textile industry, Nottingham's textile sector fell into decline in the decades following World War II. Little textile manufacture now takes place in Nottingham; however, many of the former industrial buildings in the Lace Market district have been restored and put to new uses.

Nottingham was one of the boroughs reformed by the Municipal Corporations Act 1835, and at that time consisted of the parishes of St Mary, St Nicholas and St Peter. It was expanded in 1877 by adding the parishes of Basford, Brewhouse Yard, Bulwell, Radford, Sneinton, Standard Hill, and parts of the parishes of West Bridgford, Carlton, Wilford (North Wilford). In 1889 Nottingham became a county borough under the Local Government Act 1888. City status was awarded as part of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of Queen Victoria, being signified in a letter from the prime minister, the Marquess of Salisbury to the mayor, dated 18 June 1897. Nottingham was extended in 1933 by adding Bilborough and Wollaton, parts of the parishes of Bestwood Park and Colwick, and a recently developed part of the Beeston Urban District. A further boundary extension was granted in 1951 when Clifton and Wilford (south of the River Trent) were incorporated into the city.^[31][32]

Electric trams were introduced to the city in 1901; they served the city for 35 years until 1936. Trams were reintroduced after 68 years when a new network opened in 2004.^[32]

In the sporting world, Nottingham is home to the world's oldest professional football club, Notts County, which was formed in 1862. The town's other football club, Nottingham Forest, had a period of success between 1977 and 1993 under manager Brian Clough, winning the First Division, four League Cups, a UEFA Super Cup and two European Cups.^[33] During this time Forest signed Trevor Francis, Britain's first £1 million footballer, who joined the club in February 1979 from Birmingham City.^[34]

The city was the site of race riots in 1958, centred on the St Ann's neighbourhood.^[35]

During the second half of the 20th century Nottingham saw urban growth with the development of new public and private housing estates and new urban centres, which have engulfed former rural villages such as Bilborough, Wollaton, Gedling and Bramcote. South of the river there has also been expansion with new areas such as Edwalton and West Bridgford, adding to Nottingham's urban sprawl. Although this growth slowed towards the end of the century, the modern pressures for more affordable and council housing is back on the political agenda and there is now pressure on the Green Belt which surrounds the city.

There are two major local authorities that serve the Nottingham area. These are Nottingham City Council and Nottinghamshire County Council.

Nottingham City Council is a unitary authority based at Loxley House, Nottingham on Station Street. It consists of 55 councillors, representing 20 wards, who are elected every four years; the last elections being held on 7 May 2015.

The city also has a Lord Mayor who is selected by city councillors from among themselves. The position is largely ceremonial but the Lord Mayor also acts as Chair of Full Council meetings.

The City of Nottingham's boundaries are tightly drawn and exclude several suburbs and satellite towns that are usually considered part of Greater Nottingham. Unlike the City, these areas are governed by a two tier system of local government. Nottinghamshire County Council (based at County Hall), provides the upper tier of local government whilst the lower tier is split into several district or borough councils. The County Council are responsible for Health, Social Care, Education, Highways, Transport, Libraries and Trading Standards, whilst the lower tier councils are responsible for local planning, neighbourhood services, housing, licensing, environmental health and leisure facilities. The western suburbs of Beeston, Stapleford and Eastwood are administered by Broxtowe Borough Council. Further west still, the Nottingham urban district extends into Derbyshire where Ilkeston and Long Eaton are administered by Erewash Borough Council, and Ripley by Amber Valley. To the north, Hucknall is controlled by Ashfield District Council, while in the east Arnold and Carlton form part of the Borough of Gedling. South of the river, the suburb of West Bridgford lies in Rushcliffe, as do the outlying villages of Ruddington and Tollerton and the town of Bingham.

Nottingham has three UK parliamentary constituency seats within its boundaries. Nottingham North has been represented since 2017 by Labour MP Alex Norris, Nottingham East since 2010 by Labour MP Chris Leslie (Change UK - The Independent Group as of February 2019^[36]) and Nottingham South since 2010 by Labour MP Lilian Greenwood. Each of the outer districts (Broxtowe, Ashfield, Gedling and Rushcliffe) are also parliamentary constituencies in their own right.

Nottingham lies within the East Midlands European parliamentary constituency. In 2019, it elected five MEPs: Annunziata Rees-Mogg (Brexit Party), Matthew Patten (Brexit Party), Rory Palmer (Labour), Jonathan Bullock (Brexit Party) and Bill Newton Dunn (Liberal Democrats).^[37]

Nottingham is situated on an area of low hills^[38] along the lower valley of the River Trent, and is surrounded by the Sherwood Forest in the north, the Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Yorkshire Coalfield in the west, and the Trent and Belvoir Vales in the east and south.

Within the city, native wildlife includes red fox, peregrine falcon and common kingfisher.^[39] Notable nature reserves around the city include Attenborough Nature Reserve SSSI, Sherwood Forest National Nature Reserve, Holme Pit SSSI, Fairham Brook Local Wildlife Site and Wollaton Park. Due to its position as a central city with strong transport links, Nottingham has become home to invasive animal and plant species including rose-ringed parakeet, Japanese knotweed and Himalayan balsam.^[40]

Like most of the United Kingdom, Nottingham has a temperate oceanic climate (Köppen: Cfb) and experiences warm mild summers and mild to cool winters with abundant precipitation throughout the year. There are weather-reporting stations close to Nottingham—the former "Nottingham Weather Centre", at Watnall, about 6 miles (10 km) north-west of the city centre; and the University of Nottingham's agricultural campus at Sutton Bonington, about 10 miles (16 km) to the south-west of the city centre. The highest temperature recorded in Nottingham (Watnall) stands at 36.1 °C (97.0 °F),^[41] whilst Sutton Bonington recorded a temperature of 36.0 °C (96.8 °F),^[42] both recorded on 25 July 2019, and the record-high minimum temperature is 19.9 °C (67.8 °F)^[43] recorded in August 2004. On average, a temperature of 25 °C (77 °F) or above is recorded on 11.0 days per year^[44] at Watnall (1981–2010), and the warmest day of the year reaches an average of 29.4 °C (84.9 °F).^[45]

For the period 1981–2010 Nottingham (Watnall) recorded on average 42.9 days of air frost per year,^[46] and Sutton Bonington 47.1.^[47] The lowest recorded temperature in Nottingham (Watnall) is −13.3 °C (8.1 °F) recorded in January 1963^[48] and January 1987,^[49] whilst a temperature of −17.8 °C (0.0 °F) was recorded in Sutton Bonington on 24 February 1947.^[50] The record-low maximum temperature is −6.3 °C (20.7 °F)^[51] recorded in January 1963. For the period of 1981–2010, the coldest temperature of the year reaches an average of −6.6 °C (20.1 °F)^[52] in Nottingham (Watnall).

In 2017 it was reported that Nottingham is one of a number of UK cities that break WHO air pollution guidelines for the maximum concentration of small particulate matter. Pollution in part being caused by harmful wood-burning stoves.^[58]

Nottingham is bounded by a green belt area, provisionally drawn up from the 1950s. Completely encircling the city, it extends for several miles into the surrounding districts, as well as towards Derby.

The geographical centre of Nottingham is usually defined as the Old Market Square. The square is dominated by the Council House, which replaced the Nottingham Exchange Building, built in 1726. The Council House was built in the 1920s to display civic pride, ostentatiously using baroque columns and placing stone statues of two lions at the front to stand watch over the square. The Exchange Arcade, on the ground floor, is an upmarket shopping centre containing boutiques.

Tall office buildings line Maid Marian Way. The Georgian area around Oxford and Regent Streets is dominated by small professional firms. The Albert Hall faces the Gothic revival St Barnabas' Roman Catholic Cathedral by Pugin. Nottingham Castle and its grounds are located further south in the western third of the city. The central third descends from the University district in the north, past Nottingham Trent University's Gothic revival Arkwright Building. The university also owns many other buildings in this area. The Theatre Royal on Theatre Square, with its pillared façade, was built in 1865. King and Queen Streets are home to striking Victorian buildings designed by such architects as Alfred Waterhouse and Watson Fothergill.

To the south, is Broadmarsh Shopping Centre. The Canal-side further south of this is adjacent to Nottingham railway station and home to numerous redeveloped 19th-century industrial buildings, reused as bars and restaurants.

The eastern third of the city centre contains the Victoria Shopping Centre, built in the 1970s on the site of the demolished Victoria Railway Station. All that remains of the old station is the clock tower and the station hotel, now the Nottingham Hilton Hotel. The 250-foot-high Victoria Centre flats stand above the shopping centre and are the tallest buildings in the city. The eastern third contains Hockley Village. Hockley is where many of Nottingham's unique, independent shops are to be found. It is also home to two alternative cinemas.

The Lace Market area just south of Hockley has streets with four- to seven-storey red brick warehouses, iron railings and red phone boxes.

Many of the buildings have been converted into apartments, bars and restaurants. The largest building in the Lace Market is the Adams Building, built by Thomas Chambers Hine for Thomas Adams (1807–1873), and currently used by Nottingham College. The Georgian-built Shire Hall, which was once Nottingham's main court and prison building, is now home to the National Justice Museum (formerly the "Galleries of Justice").

Ye Olde Trip To Jerusalem (the Trip), partially built into the cave system beneath Nottingham Castle, is a contender for the title of England's Oldest Pub, as it is supposed to have been established in 1189.^[59] The Bell Inn in the Old Market Square, and Ye Olde Salutation Inn (the Salutation) in Maid Marian Way have both disputed this claim. The Trip's current timber building probably dates back to the 17th or 18th century, but the caves are certainly older and may have been used to store beer and water for the castle during medieval times. There are also caves beneath the Salutation that date back to the medieval period, although they are no longer used as beer cellars. The Bell Inn is probably the oldest of the three pub buildings still standing, according to dendrochronology, and has medieval cellars that are still used to store beer.^[60]

Almost 62,000 students attend the city's two universities, Nottingham Trent University and the University of Nottingham; in the 2016/17 academic year, Trent University was attended by 29,370 students and Nottingham University by 32,515.^[61] The University of Nottingham Medical School is part of the Queen's Medical Centre.^[62]

There are three colleges of further education located in Nottingham: Bilborough College is solely a sixth form college; Nottingham College was formed in 2017, by the amalgamation of Central College Nottingham and New College Nottingham (which had both previously formed from the merger of smaller FE colleges); and the Confetti Institute of Creative Technologies, owned by Nottingham Trent University, is a further education college that specialises in media.^[63] The city has dozens of sixth form colleges and academies, providing education and training for adults aged over sixteen.^[64]

Nottingham also has a number of independent schools. The city's oldest educational establishment is Nottingham High School, which was founded in 1513.^[65][66]

In 2010, Nottingham City Council announced that the target sectors of their economic development strategy would include low-carbon technologies; digital media; life sciences; financial and business services; and retail and leisure.^[67]

Nottingham is home to the headquarters of several companies. These include Alliance Boots (formerly Boots the Chemists); Chinook Sciences; GM (cricket bats); Pedigree pet food; VF Cooperation (American clothing); Changan Automobile (Chinese-made automobiles); the credit reference agency Experian; energy company E.ON UK; betting company Gala Group; amusement and gambling machine manufacturer Bell-Fruit-Games; engineering company Siemens; sportswear manufacturers Speedo; high-street opticians Vision Express and Specsavers; games and publishing company Games Workshop; PC software developer Serif Europe (publisher of PagePlus and other titles); web hosting provider Heart Internet; the American credit card company Capital One; the national law firm Browne Jacobson; and Earache Records, an independent music company founded by local resident Digby Pearson, based on Handel Street in Sneinton. Nottingham also has offices of Nottingham Building Society (established 1849); HM Revenue and Customs; the Driving Standards Agency; Ofsted; the Care Quality Commission; and BBC East Midlands.

Nottingham was named one of the UK's six science cities in 2005 by the then Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown. Among the science-based industries within the city is BioCity. Founded as a joint venture between Nottingham Trent University and the University of Nottingham, it is the UK's biggest bioscience innovation and incubation centre, housing around 80 science-based companies.^[68]

Until recently, bicycle manufacturing was a major industry: the city was the birthplace of Raleigh Cycles in 1886, later joined by Sturmey-Archer, the developer of three-speed hub gears. However, Raleigh's factory on Triumph Road, famous as the location for the filming of Saturday Night and Sunday Morning, was demolished in 2003 to make way for the University of Nottingham's expansion of its Jubilee Campus. The schools and aerial photographers, H Tempest Ltd, were Nottingham-based for many years, until relocating to St. Ives (Cornwall) around 1960.

In 2015, Nottingham was ranked in the top 10 UK cities for job growth (from 2004 to 2013), in the public and private sectors.^[69] And in the same year, it was revealed that more new companies were started in Nottingham in 2014-15 than in any other UK city, with a 68% year-on-year increase.^[70]

In 2014, Nottingham came seventh in CACI's Retail Footprint rankings of retail expenditure in the UK, behind the West End of London, Glasgow, Birmingham, Manchester and Liverpool.^[71] This is a slip of four places since 2010, primarily due to major developments in other parts of the UK and a relative lack of investment in Nottingham. However Intu, the owners of the two main shopping centres (the Victoria Centre and the Broadmarsh Centre) have plans to upgrade and extend them both.^[72]

The Victoria Centre was built on the site of the former Nottingham Victoria railway station, and was the first to be built in the city, with parking for up to 2,400 cars on several levels, and a bus station.

Nottingham City Council, then owners of the Broadmarsh Centre, had been trying to redevelop it for "almost two decades".^[73] Work on redeveloping Broadmarsh, at a cost of £400 million (creating 400 stores, 136,000 m2 of shopping space), was due to start in 2008. However, the economic downturn meant that redevelopment was delayed throughout from 2008 to 2010. In the light of the Victoria Centre's redevelopment plans, Westfield announced in 2011 that it was once again planning a £500 million development of Broadmarsh, which would start in 2012. This, however, did not happen either. Broadmarsh was finally sold to Capital Shopping Centres, the owners of the Victoria Centre. The purchase prompted an investigation by the Office of Fair Trading and the Competition Commission, who were concerned that the company's monopoly over the city's shopping centres could have a negative impact on competition.^[74] CSC subsequently rebranded itself and the centres use the "Intu" name. Although the new owners wished to start the planned development of the Victoria Centre, Nottingham City Council insisted that Broadmarsh must have priority, with the Council offering £50 million towards its redevelopment.^[75] The deputy leader of Nottingham City Council said the Council would withhold planning permission for the development of the Victoria Centre until they saw "bulldozers going into the Broadmarsh Centre."^[73]

Smaller shopping centres in the city are The Exchange Arcade, the Flying Horse Walk and newer developments in Trinity Square and The Pod. The Bridlesmith Gate area has numerous designer shops, and is the home of the original Paul Smith boutique. There are various side streets and alleys with some interesting and often overlooked buildings and shops—such as Poultry Walk, West End Arcade and Hurts Yard. These are home to many specialist shops, as is Derby Road, near the Roman Catholic Cathedral and once the antiques area.

Nottingham has a number of department stores including the House of Fraser, John Lewis and Debenhams.

In March 2011, the government announced the creation of Nottingham Enterprise Zone, an enterprise zone sited on part of the Boots Estate.^[76] In March 2012, Nottingham Science Park, Beeston Business Park and Nottingham Medipark were added to the zone.^[77] In December 2014, the government announced that the zone would be expanded again, to include Infinity Park Derby, a planned business park for aerospace, rail and automotive technology adjacent to the Rolls-Royce site in Sinfin, Derby.^[78]

The Creative Quarter is a project started by Nottingham City Council as part of the Nottingham City Deal. Centred on the east of the city (including the Lace Market, Hockley, Broadmarsh East, the Island site and BioCity), the project aims at creating growth and jobs. In July 2012, the government contributed £25 million towards a £45 million venture capital fund, mainly targeted at the Creative Quarter.^[79]

Nottingham has two large-capacity theatres, the Nottingham Playhouse and the Theatre Royal, which together with the neighbouring Royal Concert Hall forms the Royal Centre. The city also contains smaller theatre venues such as the Nottingham Arts Theatre, the Lace Market Theatre and New Theatre.

There is a Cineworld and a Showcase in the city. Independent cinemas include the Arthouse Broadway Cinema in Hockley,^[80] and the four-screen Art Deco Savoy Cinema.^[81]

The city contains several notable museums and art galleries including:

In 2015, the National Videogame Arcade was opened in the Hockley area of the city; being "the UK's first cultural centre for videogames".^[82] It was announced in June 2018 that the arcade was soon to close and relocate to Sheffield city centre,^[83] where it reopened in November 2018 as the National Videogame Museum.^[84]

Nottingham has several large music and entertainment venues including the Royal Concert Hall, Rock City, Nottingham Royal Concert Hall (2,500-capacity) and the Nottingham Arena (Social centre). Nottingham's City Ground played host to rock band R.E.M. in 2005, the first time a concert had been staged at the football stadium.^[85]

Nottingham also has a selection of smaller venues, including the Albert Hall (800-capacity), Ye Olde Salutation Inn, Malt Cross, Rescue Rooms, the Bodega, the Old Angel, the Central, the Maze, the Chameleon and the Corner. 1960s Blues-rock band Ten Years After formed in Nottingham, as did the 1970s pop act Paper Lace and the critically acclaimed Tindersticks, as well as influential folk singer Anne Briggs. Since the beginning of the 2010s, the city has produced a number of artists to gain media attention, including; Jake Bugg, London Grammar, Indiana, Sleaford Mods, Natalie Duncan, Ady Suleiman, Dog Is Dead, Saint Raymond, Childhood, Rue Royale, Spotlight Kid and Amber Run.

Nottingham is home to Earache Records, a large independent record label setup in Nottingham in 1986 and famously home to Napalm Death, Carcass (band), Entombed (band), Rival Sons and more.

The city has an active classical music scene, with long-established ensembles such as the city's Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonic Orchestra, Nottingham Harmonic Society, Bach Choir, Early Music Group Musica Donum Dei and the Symphonic Wind Orchestra giving regular performances in the city. The Sumac Centre is a social centre in Forest Fields.

Wollaton Park in Nottingham hosts an annual family-friendly music event called Splendour. In 2009 it was headlined by Madness and the Pogues. The following year it was headlined by the Pet Shop Boys and featured, among others, Calvin Harris, Noisettes, Athlete and OK Go.^[86] In 2011, it featured headline acts Scissor Sisters, Blondie, Eliza Doolittle and Feeder. In 2012, performers included Dizzee Rascal, Razorlight, Katy B and Hard-Fi. In 2014, Wollaton Park hosted the first-ever No Tomorrow Festival, featuring the likes of Sam Smith, London Grammar and Clean Bandit.^[87]

Nottingham is known for its hip-hop scene.^[88] Rofl Audio Recording Studios opened in 2013,^[89] on the site of a former square known as "Milk Square" which was known to have hosted musicians, bands and orchestras in the 1800s^[90][91] Since opening the studios have hosted musicians and actors from various places including involvement in Hollywood films,^[92] and British rock band Spiritualized's album And Nothing Hurt.^[93] The studios are a base for rapper and producer Sway Dasafo's New Reign Productions^[94] and Jake Bugg's manager, Jason Hart ^[95]

Nottingham holds several multicultural events throughout the year. The city has hosted an annual Asian Mela every summer since about 1989,^[96] there is a parade on St Patrick's Day,^[97] fireworks at the Chinese New Year, Holi in the Park to celebrate the Hindu spring festival,^[98][99] a West Indian-style carnival, and several Sikh events.^[100]

The city is particularly famous for its annual Goose Fair, a large travelling funfair held at the Forest Recreation Ground at the beginning of October every year. Established over 700 years ago, the fair was originally a livestock market where thousands of geese were sold in the Old Market Square, but these days Goose Fair is known for its fairground rides and attractions.^[101]

Since the late 1990s, Nottinghamshire Pride has organized an annual pride parade, a day-long celebration that usually takes place in Nottingham during July.^[102]

The Hockley Arts Market runs alongside Sneinton Market.

There are several hundred restaurants in Nottingham, with there being several AA rosette winning restaurants in 2010^[103] Iberico World Tapas, located in the city centre, was awarded a Bib Gourmand in the 2013 Michelin Guide.^[104] Sat Bains, on the edge of the city, near Clifton Bridge, is a two-star Michelin restaurant.

In 2010, the city was named as one of the "Top 10 Cities to Visit in 2010" by DK Travel.^[105] In 2013 it was estimated the city received 247,000 overseas visitors.^[106]

There is a Robin Hood Pageant in Nottingham in October. The city is home to the Nottingham Robin Hood Society, founded in 1972 by Jim Lees and Steve and Ewa Theresa West.^[107]

In February 2008, a Ferris wheel was put up in the Old Market Square and was an attraction of Nottingham City Council's "Light Night" on 8 February. The wheel returned to Nottingham in February 2009 to mark another night of lights, activities, illuminations and entertainment. Initially marketed as the Nottingham Eye, it was later redubbed as the Nottingham Wheel, to avoid any association with the London Eye.^[108] It was seen again in 2010 and 2015.

Sherwood Forest County Park is a Natural Nature Reserve spanning 450 acres in the county of Nottinghamshire only 17 miles north of Nottingham. This grand forest has been a part of great history for decades, showing evidence of use by prehistoric hunters and gatherers. It's even said that the legendary Robin Hood of the 1200s has set foot here and hid near the Major Oak, referred to as the 1000-year-old giant tree.^[109] Today, Sherwood County Park is internationally recognized with annual visitors reaching around 350,000.^[110]

Many local businesses and organisations use the worldwide fame of Robin Hood to represent or promote their brands. Many residents converse in the East Midlands dialect. The friendly term of greeting "Ay-up me duck" is a humorous example of the local dialect.^[111] but with an unclear origin.

Nottingham has featured in a number of fictional works.

Nottingham is home to two professional football clubs: Notts County and Nottingham Forest. Their two football grounds, facing each other on opposite sides of the River Trent, are noted for geographically being the closest in English league football. Notts County, formed in 1862, is the oldest professional football club in the world.^[112] They were also among the Football League's founder members in 1888. For most of their history they have played their home games at Meadow Lane, which currently holds some 20,000 spectators, all seated. They currently play in Football League Two, at Level 4 in the English football league system (most recently played at Level 1 in May 1992).^[113] Nottingham Forest, who currently play in the Level 2 Football League Championship, were English Level 1 champions in 1978 and won the European Cup twice over the next two seasons under the management of Brian Clough, who was the club's manager from January 1975 to May 1993, leading them to four Football League Cup triumphs in that time. They have played at the City Ground, on the south bank of the River Trent, since 1898. Nottingham Forest joined the Football League in 1892, four years after its inception when it merged with the rival Football Alliance, and 100 years later, they were among the FA Premier League's founder members in 1992—though they have not played top division football since May 1999.^[114] The City Ground played host to group stage games in the 1996 European Football Championships.^[115]

Nottingham won the title of 2015 City of Football after five months of campaigning, which resulted in £1.6m in funding for local football ventures and to encourage more people to play the sport.^[116] Nottingham was selected to be a host city for the England 2018 FIFA World Cup bid.^[117] It was proposed that if the bid were successful, the city would have received a new Nottingham Forest Stadium.^[118]

Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club play at Trent Bridge—an international cricket venue. The club were 2010 Cricket County Champions. Trent Bridge cricket ground is a host of Test Cricket, and was one of the venues for the 2009 ICC World Twenty20.

The Rugby team, Nottingham R.F.C., have played their home games at League One, Notts County's Meadow Lane stadium since 2006. In January 2015 they will play home matches at their training base, Lady Bay Sports Ground. Currently in the RFU Championship, if Nottingham are promoted to the Rugby Premiership they will return to Meadow Lane for home matches.^[119] Nottingham Outlaws are an amateur Rugby League club who play in the Rugby League Conference National Division. The Nottingham Caesars who were formed in 1984 play in the British American Football League at the Harvey Hadden Stadium.

The city was the birthplace and training location for ice dancers Torvill and Dean, who won Gold at the 1984 Sarajevo Olympics. The National Ice Centre, first opened in 2000, is a national centre for ice sports. The square in-front of the centre is named "Bolero Square" after Torvill and Dean's perfect 6.0 performance. Nottingham is home to the Nottingham Panthers ice hockey team.

Other sporting events in the city include the annual tennis Aegon Trophy (which is staged at the City of Nottingham Tennis Centre), the Robin Hood Marathon, Milk Race, the Great Nottinghamshire Bike Ride^[120] and the Outlaw Triathlon.^[121] Nottingham also has two Roller Derby leagues: Nottingham Roller Derby (which consists of two teams, the female-identifying team Nottingham Roller Girls and the open-to-all team Super Smash Brollers)^[122] and the female-identifying Nottingham Hellfire Harlots.^[123]

In October 2015, Nottingham was named as the official Home of Sport by VisitEngland,^[124][125] for its sporting contributions and in recognition of its development of the sports of football, cricket, ice hockey, boxing, tennis, athletics, gymnastics and water sports.

Nottingham is served by East Midlands Airport (formerly known as Nottingham East Midlands Airport until it reverted to its original name), near Castle Donington in North West Leicestershire, just under 15 miles (24 km) south-west of the city centre.

Nottingham Station, the second busiest railway station in the Midlands for passenger entries and exits,^[126] provides rail services for the city; with connections operated by CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway and Northern.

The reintroduction of trams in 2004 made Nottingham the newest of only six English cities to have a light rail system.^[127] The trams run from the city centre to Hucknall in the north, with a spur to the Phoenix Park Park and Ride close to Junction 26 of the M1. Two new lines opened in 2015 extending the network to the southern suburbs of Wilford and Clifton and the western suburbs of Beeston and Chilwell.^[128]

In April 2012, Nottingham became the first city in the UK to introduce a workplace parking levy.^[129] The levy charges businesses £350 on each parking space made available to their employees, provided that the business has more than ten such parking spaces. The council have used the revenue of around £10 million a year to develop the city's tram system.^[130] There has been a 9% reduction in traffic and 15% increase in public transport use since the introduction of the levy.^[131]

Nottingham City Transport (NCT) is the biggest transport operator in Nottingham, with 330 buses.^[17] In September 2010, Nottingham was named "England's least car-dependent city" by the Campaign for Better Transport with London and Manchester in second and fourth place respectively.^[132]

Nottingham's waterways, now primarily used for leisure, have been extensively used for transport in the past.

Fire and rescue services are provided by Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service, and emergency medical care by East Midlands Ambulance Service, both of which have their headquarters in Nottingham. Law enforcement is carried out by Nottinghamshire Police, whose headquarters are at Sherwood Lodge in Arnold. The city has a Crown Court and a Magistrates' Court.

Laurie Macdonald of Inside One magazine observes that Nottingham's former high crime rate earned it the nickname "Shottingham", but that by 2013 this image was outdated. The article was written in response to a uSwitch survey that had found south Nottinghamshire to be the fourth-best place to live in the UK in terms of living standards. Crime in the city of Nottingham had also fallen by three-quarters since 2007.^[133]

There are two major National Health Service hospitals in Nottingham, the Queen's Medical Centre (QMC) and Nottingham City Hospital, both managed by the Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust. The QMC is a teaching hospital with close connections to the Medical School at Nottingham University; until 2012, it was the largest hospital in the UK. Nottingham City Hospital includes maternity and neonatal facilities but has no A&E department. Students from the Medical School are attached to most of the departments at City Hospital as part of their clinical training.

Severn Trent Water is the company responsible for supplying fresh water to households and businesses in Nottingham, as well as the treatment of sewage. Severn Trent took over these services from the City of Nottingham Water Department in 1974.

Nottingham is host to the UK's first and only local authority-owned and not-for-profit energy company, Robin Hood Energy.^[134][135]

The city has one of the largest district heating schemes in the UK, operated by EnviroEnergy Limited, which is wholly owned by Nottingham City Council. The plant in the city centre supplies heat to 4,600 homes, and a wide variety of business premises, including the Concert Hall, the Nottingham Arena, the Victoria Baths, the Broadmarsh Shopping Centre, the Victoria Centre, and others.^[136]

Veolia operates a cogeneration (CHP) plant in Nottingham for generating energy from biomass.^[137]

Historically, the requirement for city status was the presence of a (Church of England) cathedral. Nottingham, however, does not have one, having only been designated a city in 1897, in celebration of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee. From around AD 1100 Nottingham was part of the Diocese of Lichfield, controlled as an archdeaconry from Lichfield Cathedral in Staffordshire. However, in 1837 the archdeaconry was placed under the control of the Diocese of Lincoln. In 1884 it became part of the newly created Diocese of Southwell, which it, and the city, are still part of today. The bishop is based at Southwell Minster, 14 miles (23 km) north-east of the city.

Despite not having a cathedral, Nottingham has three notable historic Anglican parish churches, all of which date back to the Middle Ages. St. Mary the Virgin, in the Lace Market, is the oldest and largest. The church dates from the eighth or ninth centuries, but the present building is at least the third on the site, dating primarily from 1377 to 1485. St. Mary's is considered the mother church of the city and civic services are held here, including the welcome to the new Lord Mayor of Nottingham each year. It is a member of the Greater Churches Group. St. Peter's in the heart of the city is the oldest building in continuous use in Nottingham, with traces of building starting in 1180. St. Nicholas' is the third.

A variety of chapels and meeting rooms are in the town. Many of these grand buildings have been demolished, including Halifax Place Wesleyan Chapel, but some have been re-used, notably High Pavement Chapel which is now a public house. There are three Christadelphian meeting halls in the city and the national headquarters of the Congregational Federation is in Nottingham.

Nottingham is one of 18 British cities that do not have an Anglican cathedral.^[138][139] It is, however, home to the Roman Catholic Cathedral of St. Barnabas, which was designed by Augustus Pugin and consecrated in 1844. It is the cathedral church for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Nottingham.

Today there are places of worship for all major religions, including Christianity and Islam with 32 mosques in Nottingham.^[140]

Nottingham has 80,000 Christians, 30,000 Muslims, 15,000 Sikhs, 8,000 Hindus and 2,000 Jews.^[141]

The ONS 2014 basis population projections indicate that the city is once again in a phase of steady population growth and that the 350,000 mark should be reached around 2030.

The city of Nottingham has a population at 312,900 with the Greater Nottingham population at 729,977 and the Metro population at 1,543,000. The city of Nottingham has a density of 4,073/km2.

65.4% are White British, 13.1% Asian, 8.2% of West Indian origins, 6.1% are European/North American, 4.3% African, 1.6% Middle Eastern and 1.1% South/Central American. The city's population also has the largest proportion of any UK city identifying as mixed race, at 6.7% with 4% being mixed white and black Caribbean.^[145]

The BBC has its East Midlands headquarters in Nottingham on London Road. BBC East Midlands Today is broadcast from the city every weeknight at 6.30 pm.

From 1983 to 2005 Central Television (the ITV region for the east Midlands) had a studio complex on Lenton Lane, producing programmes for various networks and broadcasting regional news.

The city was recently granted permission by Ofcom to set up its own local television station. After a tender process, Confetti College was awarded the licence. The station was declared open by Prince Harry in April 2013 and Notts TV began broadcast in spring 2014.^[146]

In addition to the national commercial and BBC radio stations, the Nottingham area is served by licensed commercial radio stations (though all broadcast to a wider area than the city).

Radio stations include:

The city's two universities both broadcast their own student radio stations. Nottingham Trent University's FlyFM is based at the university's city campus and is broadcast online.^[147] Nottingham University's University Radio Nottingham is broadcast around the main and Sutton Bonnington campuses on medium wave (AM), as well as over the internet.^[148]

Nottingham's main local newspaper, the Nottingham Post, is owned by Local World and is published daily from Monday to Saturday each week.

LeftLion magazine (established 2003) is distributed for free across the city. Covering Nottingham culture including music, art, theatre, comedy, food and drink.

Student tabloid The Tab also publishes online content and has teams at both universities.^[149][150]

Nottingham has been used as a location in many locally, nationally, and internationally produced films. Movies that have been filmed (partly or entirely) in Nottingham include:^[151]

Nottingham is twinned with the following cities:^[152]