Blackburn will be up against 38 towns in the bid for city status.

Towns from all across the UK and even British Overseas Territories are in the running to be granted city status as part of a competition to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022.

In England, the competition for Blackburn includes Bournemouth, Reading, Doncaster.

In Scotland, eight areas have applied, including Dumfries and St Andrews, and in Wales, Wrexham has submitted a bid.

In Northern Ireland, Ballymena, Coleraine and Bangor are in the competition.

For the first time ever, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies were also eligible to apply for the title.

Stanley in the Falkland Islands, almost 8,000 miles away, is one of the places to apply, and there are also entries from George Town in the Cayman Islands and Gibraltar.

According to the Cabinet Office, winning city status can provide a boost to local communities and open up new opportunities for people who live there.

The competition is part of celebrations to mark the Queen’s historic 70-year reign, with a special four-day bank holiday weekend set to start on Thursday June 2.

As part of their bids, applicants were asked to talk about the distinct identity and community which they feel means their area deserves to become a city, as well as evidence of links to royalty.

Unlike previous Civic Honours competitions, an expert panel will work closely with ministers to make their recommendations, which will then be approved by the Queen.

The final decision will be taken in spring 2022 and announced shortly afterwards.

The full list of towns which have applied for city status:

  • Alcester, Warwickshire
  • Ballymena, County Antrim
  • Bangor, County Down
  • Blackburn, Lancashire
  • Bolsover, Derbyshire
  • Boston, Lincolnshire
  • Bournemouth, Dorset
  • Coleraine, County Londonderry
  • Colchester, Essex
  • Crawley, West Sussex
  • Crewe, Cheshire
  • Doncaster, South Yorkshire
  • Dorchester, Dorset
  • Douglas, Isle of Man
  • Dudley, West Midlands
  • Dumfries, Dumfries and Galloway
  • Dunfermline, Fife
  • Elgin, Moray
  • George Town, Cayman Islands
  • Gibraltar, Gibraltar
  • Goole, East Yorkshire
  • Greenock, Renfrewshire
  • Guildford, Surrey
  • Livingston, West Lothian
  • Marazion, Cornwall
  • Medway, Kent
  • Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire
  • Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire
  • Newport and Carisbrooke, Hampshire
  • Northampton, Northamptonshire
  • Oban, Argyll and Bute
  • Reading, Berkshire
  • Peel, Isle of Man
  • St Andrews, Fife
  • Stanley, Falkland Islands
  • South Ayrshire, Ayrshire and Arran
  • Warrington, Cheshire
  • Warwick, Warwickshire
  • Wrexham, Clwyd