Lincoln Cathedral has a double celebration for Lincolnshire Day as it will also be lit in red, yellow, green and blue to mark the 20th anniversary of the Lincolnshire Flag.

While some counties have historic flags, many hundreds of years old, the Lincolnshire flag was created in 2005 in a joint project by BBC Radio Lincolnshire and Lincolnshire Life magazine.

The flag was chosen by a public vote and designed by Michelle Andrews, who now works at Lincoln Cathedral.

The colours of the flag symbolise different elements of the county with blue representing Lincolnshire’s famous wide skies, and the coast, while the green shows the lush, verdant farmland where much of the country’s food is produced.

Lincoln Cathedral seen from the wall walk at Lincoln Castle and flying the Lincolnshire Flag.

placeholder image — Lincoln Cathedral seen from the wall walk at Lincoln Castle and flying the Lincolnshire Flag.

In the centre of the flag sits a gold fleur-de-lis on a red cross – the symbol of Lincoln. In Christian culture the fleur-de-lis is also often linked to the Virgin Mary, to whom Lincoln Cathedral is dedicated. The red cross also represents the cross of St George, placing the city of Lincoln and the

county of Lincolnshire within the country as a whole.

The gold band surrounding the cross is a nod to the name Yellowbellies, which is given to those born and bred in Lincolnshire.

Michelle explained that the original idea behind the flag was to shine a light on Lincolnshire,

“Despite being one of the largest counties, Lincolnshire is often described as a ‘hidden gem’ and many people would struggle to locate it on a map, but this is an amazing place, full of amazing people, and the idea behind the flag was to shout about that and tell the rest of the world about

everything Lincolnshire has to offer.

“Lincolnshire has such a rich and diverse heritage, from its role as Bomber County during the Second World War, to its vital role in agriculture and food production, and its growing reputation as a world-class tourist destination, there’s so much to celebrate.”

She added that when the flag was first launched in 2005 no one had any idea whether it would catch on. “Over the years we’ve seen thousands of people take it to their hearts and it has become a widely recognised, and I hope much-loved, symbol of Lincolnshire – it’s great to see it pop up in unexpected places like at Glastonbury, or the Tour de France.

" I’m particularly excited to see Lincoln Cathedral lit in the colours of the flag – for me, that’s the pinnacle!”

Lincoln Cathedral will be lit in yellow, green, blue and red from dusk until 10pm on the evening of Wednesday, October 1.