26 February 2026 – Continued collaboration and celebration of shared cultures was again the focus of conversation between Director of the Instituto Cervantes London Victor Ugarte and BritishSpanish Society trustee Cristina Álvarez-Campana as they met at the Spanish Embassy to re-affirm their institutions’ collaboration agreement.

An agreement was first drafted in 2022 to formalise the many previous years of shared work between two institutions in promoting and celebrating Spanish language and culture within the United Kingdom. During their meeting Ugarte and Álvarez-Campana looked back on another fruitful year of shared cultural exchange. In recent years experts in many aspects of BritishSpanish relations Tom Burns-Marañón, William Chislett, Gijs van Hensbergen and Enrique Moradiello have brought the agreement to life with their exploration of history, art, and social and cultural commentary at an Annual Lecture jointly hosted by the BritishSpanish Society and Instituto Cervantes in celebration of their shared commitment to bilateral relations.

The 2026 renewal of the agreement signals the strengthening of a partnership which focusses on people and culture. On signing the agreement Ugarte commented ‘we are proud of the many joint activities already taking place – and excited for all those to come’. Álvarez-Campana similarly noted ‘our shared values create many opportunities for culture exchange; we are delighted to confirm our commitment to working together to celebrate such a positive relationship’.

Photo: L-R Victor Ugarte, Cristina Álvarez-Campana