There's a new man organising this year's Brighton Festival and a new theme.

He's Nick Dodds and the celebration will be of all things Japanese.

How appropriate that it should be launched today at Moschi Moschi, the Japanese restaurant which has brought some life to Bartholomew Square.

And how refreshing to have an Oriental theme in a city whose main symbol is the exotic, Eastern-style Royal Pavilion.

There's still continuity with the past because most of the programme has been devised by former festival director Chris Barron who had an offer he could not refuse to run Scottish Opera.

The festival has had to overcome obstacles, including the continued absence of the Dome for another season and the demolition now taking place of the Essoldo, which would have been a wonderful venue for many large-scale shows.

But the festival, with 800 performances, is easily the biggest in England. It is also the most bizarre, wacky and wonderful collection of events available anywhere, fully demonstrating the unquenchable spirit of the new city.

What Mr Dodds and his talented team have to do is keep up the reputation of Brighton for sparky originality while balancing the books and ensuring there is something for everyone to enjoy.

It is not an easy job and inevitably there will be some flops among the successes, but the festival is a big showcase for Brighton and even those who don't watch much should will it to succeed.