The lovely Ben Whitehouse made an excellent point on Twitter this evening – we spend time celebrating the various celebrities of Birmingham, but there are some terrible glaring omissions too.
On the top of Ben’s list (by default, she’s the easiest to make a case for..) is Dame Barbara Cartland – BORN IN EDGBASTON! Other missing talent includes: David Lodge, John Wyndham, Barbara Cartland, Dexy’s Midnight Runners, Sir Barry Jackson, Arthur Conan Doyle. Admittedly, Dexy’s strikes me as the odd one out in that list – but even so, it’d make for an eclectic alternative ‘walk of fame‘ instead of the obvious Ozzy Osbourne and Frank Skinner.
If you were to add anyone to the walk, who would it be and why?
And if you were to create a more ‘cultural’ walk, where would you put it and why?
Cartland was an easier sell to someone marketing Broad Street. Get people to dress up in pink. Sell the location as somewhere to kiss a loved one. These are easier things to get people to turn up to.
The walk of stars is currently weighted to populist suggestions. Footballers/living comedians/actors etc. People that will draw a crowd. It’s sad to think that the dead literary types from Birmingham’s rich cultural heritage wouldn’t easily draw a crowd but it worries me that we’re only honouring them with tower blocks and roads named after them.
There should be libraries, halls of residence, statues, forming a walk across the city.
The current stars are more likely to be sicked on or worse in their current location. Share the walk across the city.
I suppose it’s a bit “obvious”, but I always find it very amusing that Washington Irving wrote Rip Van Winkle, and the Legend of Sleepy Hollow while he was staying with his sister in Birmingham . His sister’s homes are both gone now, however. One was roughly where the Argent Centre is, I think.
That’s not “obvious” at all. I didn’t know that gem of information. That’s a lovely fact to know. :D
Tsk, Ben! http://www.birmingham.gov.uk/irving
With the obvious literary names J.R.R. Tolkien, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (who only for a short period lived and worked in Aston Birmingham 1879 – 1882) we should add Benjamin Zephania (1958- ), poet, grew up in the Lozells district of Handsworth, Birmingham. Mike Gayle – Who’s subject mater draws on so much of the people and cultural background of Birmingham.
Interesting connection to the Midlands base for Conan Doyle is that Jeremy Brett (Actor in many Sherlock Holmes adaptations was Born in in the Midlands – Berkswell, Solihull.
Martin Shaw – Actor was also born in Birmingham.
We should not detract from the Walk of Stars as a positive starting point though I think we need to have a wider look at what constitutes cultural figures – light entertainment and music, although a very welcome start, seems to have run out of steam quite quickly based on the criteria set against inclusion on the walk of stars and we are in danger of ending up with Dale Winton or someone who once played Widow Twanky in panto. Or worse still Cliff Richard for his role in Take Me High (Brum Burgers anyone?)
How do we widen the definitions and opportunities to celebrate, discuss and encourage dialogue? Or to take into account and engage public interest? Maybe the starting point is to be less didactic and autocratic as civic institutions and actually consult with the public?
Blue plaques are not within their remit but celebrating ‘creative’ contributions to society and not just dead civil engineers and bridge builders would be welcome in any way shape or form.
My own view is that it would include Edward Burne Jones, Dickie Davis and Adrian Goldberg (Just to see how he deals with being the subject of public spending)
Isn’t this the sort of thing that marketing and promotional teams on a wage to promote Birmingham’s heritage are supposed to do?
There is already a blue plaque to Burne-Jones, in Bennets Hill. Other cultural and creative figures also feature on them.
There’s a very comprehensive list of people from, and associated with, Birmingham at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_from_Birmingham,_England
All of this talk about celebrating Birmingham’s Cultural Heritage is a fascinating point. I’d like to point out that all of the blue plaques and brown history plates that are visible in various locations throughout Birmingham, not just in the city centre but in the suburbs of the city too are organised, erected and paid for by The Birmingham Civic Society – a voluntary and not for profit organisation, who always look to public nominations for Blue plaque ideas, although for this scheme there are some criteria to fall in to.
I know the Birmingham Civic Society are also currently looking in to plans for how to commemorate other aspects of Birmingham’s Cultural heritage too – so I’ll try and keep you all posted.
The Birmingham Civic Society are also hosting an event in a couple of weeks to try and get more closely involved with the Cultural and Creative people of the city and although numbers to this event are limited and ‘invite only’ – if any one would be interested in attending to meet and talk with representatives from The Civic Society as well as listen to guest speaker Sion Simon MP for Erdington and Minister for the Creative Industries then please email: rob@bcmg.org.uk for further information!
I love the fact that so many people are passionate about celebrating the great and good of Birmingham’s past though! keep up the debate – What Made Brum Great?