The Department for Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) has revealed the 29 cities and local areas that have already put themselves forward as candidates to be the first UK 'City of Culture' in 2013.

Launched in July, the government-run competition aims to build on the success of Liverpool's status as European Capital of Culture during 2008 and will result in the successful applicant become a national focus for cultural and artistic attention. Among the applicants so far are 24 English cities and local areas including Barnsley, South Yorkshire; Birmingham; Bradford, West Yorkshire; Brighton and Hove; Carlisle and Chester, as well as Chichester, West Sussex; Chorley Council in Lancashire and Bath.

Cornwall; County Durham; Derby; Gloucester and Cheltenham; Hull; Ipswich and Haven Gateway, Suffolk; Leicester; Manchester; Norwich; Oxford; Reading; Sheffield; Pennine Lancashire; Urban South Hampshire and Wakefield have also bid. In addition to the English applicants, the Northern Ireland cities of Derry and Belfast have applied to become City of Culture along with Aberdeen in Scotland. A bid calling itself 'The Countryside' and one other UK city that does not want to be named at this stage have also submitted applications.

Culture secretary Ben Bradshaw said: "Culture is something that we are incredibly good at in the UK. But excellence and innovation in the arts does not begin and end inside the M25 and I believe we have been too London-centric for too long in our cultural life. "Liverpool's success last year brought pride, confidence and real economic regeneration to the area. Its triumphant year shows that the title of City of Culture will be a prize very much worth having, with a huge amount to play for."

Liverpool's Capital of Culture creative director, Phil Redmond, has been appointed to chair the DCMS' judging panel, which will select the bid that demonstrates a high-quality cultural programme for a wide audience and plans for a lasting social and economic legacy. Redmond added: "Culture is not an amorphous concept: it is at the heart of everything we do. To bring about any step change you need to bring about cultural shift and that is where cultural practitioners can help by introducing new ideas and new ways of doing things."