BRADFORD WOULD HAVE CLOSED WITHOUT CHANGE

Nick Brodrick’s comment in SR476 about potential changes to the National Railway Museum referred to a ‘sell-out’ at its sister National Science and Media Museum. His reasoning for this statement was that the Science Museum Group’s re-branding of Bradford’s National Museum of Photography, Film and Media to the NSMM meant that it lost its important film archive to London in exchange for Wonderlab, designed to be more appealing to young people, which would boost attendances.

Nick should have balanced his argument and added that prior to all this the SMG had announced that, due to “necessary” cost savings, one of three possible locations was earmarked for closure; Bradford was, allegedly, among them.

People of Bradford all knew what was coming next, as they are the regular whipping boys for our political masters and ‘betters’ alongside the Thames.

So it was not a sell-out, Nick. If Bradford had not complied with the changes SMG wanted it would have been a ‘goner’. Happily, in April, a much higher footfall was recorded at Bradford than previous comparable years. Perhaps Nick could issue an apology to his and, in particular,

to northern readers for his inaccurate and insulting sell-out statement. Philip Crowther, Bingley, West Yorkshire

Mr Crowther may not like what I said, but he has actually reaffirmed the point by, if anything, more strongly restating the fact that the Bradford museum gave up its photographic archive and brought in Wonderlab to reverse its fortunes, thereby explaining the reason for using the phrase ‘sell-out’. Indeed, he argues “we all knew what was coming next” – i.e. closure. The Oxford Living Dictionary’s definition describes a ‘sell-out’ as: “A betrayal of one’s principles for reasons of expedience.” Ed