City culture - how the UK is developing its offer
Which UK cities are becoming significant cultural destinations and why? This was one of the discussion topics at our recent 'Art, Investment and Cities' Forum in January.
Birmingham with its concrete 'collar' and run down areas is now on a resurgence. The 1970s saw the economy diversify into retail and tourism and in the 1990s many residential areas were substantially altered. Despite the city's failed bid in the 2008 European Capital of Culture, Birmingham continues to develop with the demolition of the inner ring road and new public realm making the city more attractive and safer at night to enjoy entertainment.
COO of Birmingham Royal Ballet, Anna Williams, described some of the optimism of the city as it looks forward to hosting the Commonwealth Games in 2022. Watch her video:
Greenwich in South East London has never been short of visitors with its historic Queen's House and Maritime Museum. However, there have been observations that tourists are not currently coming to look at historical treasures in the numbers that they should.
The Mayor's Office has carried out research to suggest that visitors to London are looking for events to join, brag-able experiences that are picture friendly to Twitter and can be shared with their friends.
Chief Executive of Old Royal Naval College, Angela McConville, says the big event that is drawing the crowds currently is the Heritage Lottery funded restoration of the institution's painted ceiling. Watch what she has to say about why visitors are drawn to this unique experience:
Glasgow is a rich mix of art galleries, monuments, retail and restaurants but until now has failed to achieve the numbers of visitors that it would like. All that is changing according to CEO, Dr Bridget McConnell, of Glasgow Life, who says 4 million visitors now come to the city's museums. There are some social problems that the city still has but the character of the people has won through. The story of Charles Rennie Mackintosh is central with the150th year of his birth this year and there is a real pride in the rest of the city's assets. Watch Bridget talk about the new cultural tourism strategy: