John Flamson: European Capital of Culture is not a reward but a scholarship

Ever since its upswing the 19^th century, the English city of Liverpool has been most famous for the perhaps most renowned pop English band the Beatles. Once a significant industrial city, it turned into one of the poorest ones in the United Kingdom of the 20^th century. New impulse kicked in with the new century and John Flamson, the director of strategic development and planning at the University of Liverpool who was involved in creating the city’s new image as European Capital of Culture 2008. He attests to the fact that the candidacy spurred new projects. He has come to Slovakia to share positive experience with organization of the biggest cultural initiative in Europe. We bring you the transcript of his speech on February 11, 2009 in Košice.

It has taken Liverpool 25 years to leave its problematic reputation behind and create a change general consciousness. City administration was run centrally, leaving the city unable to take care of itself. It was a long and curvy road. Košice must awake to its history – how the Velvet revolution affected perceptions of the city; what was reconstructed, and what is the characteristic of this decade and what should be pivotal in the next one. You should not rely on the state money.

From the way you are shaping the ECC programme I can see you are on the right path of collective leadership – collaboration between public and private sectors. Partnership and joint effort are crucial. It is necessary to work on it within the ECC but also allow other initiatives to join the process. When people start saying “us” instead of “them”, you know you have achieved a breakthrough. Significance is judged by relevance to the citizens. For this reason, it is necessary to be self-critical.

ECC came after many projects had been completed with success – it was a continuation of something good that had been accomplished previously. It took us a long time to start considering the candidacy. This contest had been perceived as an opportunity to build the city’s new image, because Liverpool had a rather troubled past. Sir Bob Scott mentioned that it is not a prize, but a scholarship of a kind, which we won to allow us to do even more. If you think of the European Capital of Culture as a scholarship, not a reward, you stop being conceited and start being self-critical when looking ahead.

Winning the title equalled a springboard in our minds, but it was also a token of appreciation of what had been done until then. Moreover, the nomination creates a winner mentality, raising city’s recognition rating, which is a very important element in creating its image, which is to draw investments. It has helped us to accomplish many things that were not progressing well previously, and has allowed us to bring many projects to completion.

We had problems at first. Discussions concerning the subject that should run the initiative, either the city or the municipal council, started heating up. The city listed to initiators’ opinions and secured an establishment of a cross-departmental administrative council, headed by the

University’s vice-rector. Thus, it was the University that was running the ECC initiative, securing its apolitical nature.

We commenced the ECC year 2008 and concluded it with a magnificent celebration in the city. We staged massive events in the streets, attracting thousands of people. Starting and ending the year was rather challenging, which is why I recommend you do not underestimate either. The celebration format is great; it sets the mood and shapes the overall impression – we would really like to urge you here not to forget these moments in the project. We were pleasantly surprised to find out what great popularity the street activities gained. We also managed to bring in all age and social groups by organizing children’s events. Organizers find children’s events very rewarding, because along with kids come the parents, often grandparents and friends, and suddenly you realize you have brought the whole city out.

If you are thinking too hard over what events to organize, you can often forget to include groups such as children who automatically bring in others. We had an event with giant spiders, to which many children and family acquaintances came; the traditional Beatles festival in August; but we also tried out something new, such as tall ships, and also smaller initiatives like presentations of poets, or scientists. We were surprised to find out what how much the city residents were really interested. We saw people we would not expect at poetry or scientific gatherings – they came and wanted to find out more about physics or the art of poetry. These small events were very crucial. You need to secure high level of activity in small communities…

About Liverpool

„Everyone thinks they know Liverpool, even those who’ve never been here. But Liverpool’s not just about the Beatles, football or wisecracks. It’s all these things – and none of them. It’s about being one of the most vibrant, life-affirming and creative cities in the UK.

The Liverpool of today is a changed city. It’s emerging as one of the UK’s leading centres for learning, culture, entertainment, sport and endeavour. Liverpool is the European Capital of Culture 2008 and the University is at the heart of it.

The University played a major role in Liverpool’s European Capital of Culture celebrations, contributing a bumper programme of activities and events from theatre to science.

The centrepiece of these activities was the creation of the Victoria Gallery & Museum, which in July 2008 saw the opening of the iconic redbrick Victoria Building to the public for the first time.” (Zdroj: www.liv.ac.uk)

“Liverpool is internationally reputable as a significant cultural centre with rich history mainly in pop music. In the 1960s, the city was well known by such poets Roger McGough and AdrianHenri.

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra is a notable local music body, which organizes concerts in Philharmonic Hall. Exuberant history of theatre art reflects in multiple local theatres – Empire, Everyman, Liverpool Playhouse, Neptune, Philharmonic Hall, Royal Court and Unity.

Liverpool can boast several distinguished galleries – Walker Art Gallery which among others displays pre-Raphaelites, Sudley House with its collections of modern art and Tate Liverpool with its Tate Gallery collections of modern art.

Liverpool is not home to any local television station of great significance. The city is covered by broadcast networks of televisions seated in Manchester (ITV Granada) and has a regional BBC studio, even though there are some other broadcasting studios in the city. It is home to some television production companies, such as Mersey Television. Local papers in Liverpool list the Daily Post and the evening paper Echo. Local radio stations include BBC Radio Merseyside, Juice FM, Radio City and Magic 1548. „(Source: www.wikipedia.sk)

Elaborated by : zuzana.lehotska@kosice2013.sk