In a special programme recorded in front of an audience at the Cheltenham Festival, Philip Dodd and guests explore the tensions between London and the regions. They ask whether the Capital has simply become a shop window for cultural activity with the really interesting now work taking place elsewhere.
Duration:
45 minutes
Programme Details
The Night Waves Cheltenham Literature Festival Debate: Has Britain broken the cultural stranglehold of its capital?
Night Waves comes from the Town Hall in Cheltenham, recorded as part of this year's Cheltenham Festival of Literature. Philip Dodd and guests discuss the relationship between London and the rest of the nation. Edinburgh has been declared world city of literature, Liverpool is set to become European city of culture, Glasgow and Manchester continue to attract worldwide attention for their creativity, and lottery money is helping to create landmark buildings in cities around Britain. Companies are relocating their headquarters and the BBC is contemplating the idea of splitting its activities around the country.
So has Britain broken the cultural stranglehold of its capital? Does London still have a role to play as the shop window for the artistic endeavours of the rest of the nation or has it now turned its back on Britain as it becomes a mega city of international proportions.
Joining Philip Dodd on stage at Cheltenham Town Hall are Jude Kelly, former director of West Yorkshire Playhouse and currently promoting London's bid for the Olympics, Anthony Wilson - who created Factory Records and the Hacienda Club which so transformed Manchester in the 1980's, the London poet and broadcaster Michael Rosen, and the Edinburgh critic Joyce McMillan.
Join Philip Dodd for Night Waves from the Cheltenham Festival - at 9.30 here on BBC Radio 3.
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