Call to city’s stars over Channel 4 bid
SHEFFIELD: MPs have called on the Arctic Monkeys, Jarvis Cocker, Michael Palin and other cultural heroes to get behind the Steel City’s bid for Channel 4’s new national headquarters which would bring 300 of the broadcaster’s jobs to the city.
MPS HAVE called on the Arctic Monkeys, Jarvis Cocker, Michael Palin and other Sheffield cultural heroes to get behind the Steel City’s bid for Channel 4’s new national headquarters.
Sheffield City Region mayor Dan Jarvis led the calls for “bighitting figures” in the music and creative industries to get behind moves to bring 300 of the broadcaster’s jobs to the city.
And he was backed by Nick Banks, the drummer in Sheffield Britpop legend Pulp, and senior MPs Louise Haigh and Clive Betts.
Channel 4 is set to announce its shortlist of potential cities to host the move from London by the end of the month, with Leeds also in the running.
Mr Jarvis urged the broadcaster’s board to “demonstrate their independence from Government” and not just back Birmingham, led by Conservative mayor Andy Street.
Appealing for cultural stars to join the campaign, the Labour MP for Barnsley Central told The
Yorkshire Post: “I think there’s an energy around the bid, I think all of us who support it have a responsibility to be out there making the case.
“And that isn’t just about me as the mayor, it isn’t just about the local authorities, it is about those big-hitting figures within the music industry, amongst the creative industries, in our world of culture, to join with us in making that case.”
Mr Jarvis said Channel 4 could “turbo-boost” his drive to make Sheffield a regional creative cultural hub and potentially bid for City Region of Culture in 2025.
Mr Banks said he was happy to get behind the bid and would mention it to his old bandmate in Pulp, Jarvis Cocker, as winning the Channel 4 HQ would be a “big deal”.
He told The Yorkshire Post :“I just think, have we got anything in Sheffield of national importance?
“Obviously Manchester’s got the BBC, Leeds has got what used to be the old Yorkshire TV, BBC Leeds, all that kind of stuff.
“It’s one of those things where they should be shared out, otherwise you just get another London that’s not in London.
“The Government talks about this Northern Powerhouse situation and this is another way of supporting that.
“Sheffield has always culturally hit above its weight so it could be a good relationship between the city and Channel 4.”
He was backed by Sheffield, Heeley MP Louise Haigh: “The best people to sell our city aren’t politicians like me but the people who make it what it is and the stars born and bred here and who are now loved around the world.
“We may not always shout as loud as our noisy neighbours but there’s a reason so many people who come to Sheffield end up staying and why so many who leave it can’t wait to get back.”
Mr Betts, who represents Sheffield South East, said: “Sheffield has got a great track record in the arts and creative industries and we should be getting everyone involved in its development, and the key players who are now celebrities should come forward.”
The Leeds City Region local enterprise partnership meanwhile said it has submitting a “compelling” rival bid.
Its chair Roger Marsh said: “Opportunities such as this – ones which can truly transform a sector and impact on the lives of everyone who lives here – only come once in a lifetime.
“Leeds City Region can be the catalyst to attract a much younger, diverse and digitally enabled audience for Channel 4 in response to the rise of the Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix and Google digital giants.”