Perth and Paisley bid for City of Culture title

I HAVE such fond memories of Paisley, where I grew up living with my mum, dad and brother, Ian.

It’s a town that has a tremendous history and the people have a strong sense of identity.

As kids, we used to take ourselves off to Paisley Museum to study the town’s industrial past as part of our schoolwork.

The magnificent Abbey also featured prominently in my youth, as my brother was in the choir and the family never missed the annual Watchnight Service.

Paisley Town Hall was important, too, and that’s where I saw The Corries belting out Flower Of Scotland, long before it was adopted as our unofficial national anthem.

Today, Paisley is a curious melting pot.

It has some of the most deprived communities in Scotland with 30% of children living in poverty, but it also has a growing cultural scene ignited by the likes of the PACE Theatre Company.

I believe it is now Paisley’s time.

It would just take a bit of alchemy – such as a national culture title – to bring about a transformation that we Buddies could be proud of.

Inclusiveness and diversity are extremely important to me and the Paisley bid has that in spades.

The ability for everyone to easily access and experience cultural activity, irrespective of background, is at the heart of Paisley’s bid.

I’ll raise a glass to that! millions on culture. And today we examine both bids, with the case for each camp put by a key proponent.

There is a significant legacy to be claimed, as shown by the many towns and cities which have thrived after receiving similar awards.

Glasgow’s fortunes were transf or med after i t was named European City of Culture in 1990.

Now, it is the third most- visited city in the UK, has a booming

Dougie McLean is arguably Perth’s most famous musician. His hit Caledonia peaked at number 45 in the UK singles charts in March 1991 when it was covered by singer Frankie Miller. He was given a place in the Scottish Music Hall of Fame and an OBE in the New Year Honours’ list.

Paisley’s pop champion is Paolo Nutini whose debut album, These Streets (2006), made number three in the UK Albums Chart. And Sunny Side Up (2009), nightlife and retail sector, and has hosted t h e Co m m o n we a l t h Games.

It attracts four million visitors every year, compared to tens of thousands before it secured City of Culture status.

During the city’s seven- year campaign for the title £ 32 million was spent, including £ 5.1m on community events and £ 3.7m on social work and education.

The UK title, established to rival the European award, is similarly debuted at No.1 in the UK albums chart.

Gerry Rafferty, who wrote 1978 hit Baker Street, also came from Paisley as does David Sneddon, who won the first series of Fame Academy in 2002 and is now a successful songwriter.

John Buchan is Perth’s most famous author. He wrote the hugely popular novel The Thirty-Nine Steps which became a movie by famed director Alfred Hitchcock. He was also a historian, lawyer, editor, beneficial. Bid chiefs in Hull, which won the bid for 2017, estimated that for ever y £1 invested, £ 5 would be generated for the local economy.

It’s no wonder, then, that a clutch of cities such as Coventry, Hereford, Sunderland and Stokeon-Trent are vying for the title.

And the Scottish rivals have already demonstrated their commitment to the culture cause.

Perth Theatre is undergoing a £ 16.6m renovation while Paisley war correspondent, government administrator, MP, director of a publishing house and Governor General of Canada.

Scottish crime writer Christopher Brookmyre is from Paisley. This year he won the Scottish crime book of the year award with his novel Black Widow, a story of cyber-abuse. His novel Quite Ugly One Morning was dramatised by ITV.

An array of actors hail from Perth and Paisley. Gerard Butler was born and