Hull has been named the UK's next City of Culture, beating Leicester, Dundee and Swansea Bay to the right to hold the title in 2017.

Hull, known for being the home of poet Philip Larkin, the Ferens gallery and the Truck theatre, will follow the 2013 City of Culture, Derry-Londonderry.

The UK government chooses a new destination every four years with the aim of helping tourism and the economy.

However, the winner does not receive direct funding from the UK government.

Ministers created the UK City of Culture title in an attempt to replicate the success of Liverpool's year as the European Capital of Culture in 2008.

Being City of Culture has brought Derry events like the Turner Prize, an outdoor theatrical extravaganza written by Frank Cottrell-Boyce - who worked on the London 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony - and BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend.

Hull's most famous cultural figure is Larkin who, while not born there, lived in the city for 30 years and found fame while working as a university librarian.

Larkin produced most of his published poetry while living in the city and Hull's bid is partly inspired by his poem Days.

It is also home to the Ferens Art Gallery, which broke visitor records with a Da Vinci exhibition last year, and the Hull Truck theatre company, which became a national force in the 1970s and '80s and moved into a new £14.5m home in 2009.

(Source: BBC)