Sir Philip Redmond visits area bidding to become Town of Culture in its 900th year

Grange Hill and Hollyoaks creator Sir Philip Redmond has said Leith is “great” as he visited the port area as it bids to become Town of Culture for its 900th anniversary year.The 77-year-old TV producer and screenwriter said one of the aims of the Town of Culture initiative is to help people “tell the story of their particular place and celebrate it”.He came to the historic port district near Edinburgh on Thursday as part of his tour of the 15 places across the UK nominated for the title.Leith, which will celebrate its 900th anniversary in 2028, is one of 15 out of the 398 towns across the UK that got to the shortlist for the honour.Sir Philip, who is the chairman of the UK Town of Culture Competition, said making the shortlist is “actually quite an achievement on its own”.Sir Philip Redmond by The Shore during a visit to Leith as part of the development of the Leith Town of Culture 2028 bid (Jane Barlow/PA)PA WireOn Thursday’s whistle stop tour, he met some of the local people involved in the Town of Culture plans and visited some of the cultural and community hotspots across Leith, including Leith Academy, Coburg Studios, Hibs Stadium, Fingal and Leith Theatre, before finishing his visit on The Shore.“I think the overall impression and the overall reason why I wanted to come (to Leith) was just to meet the people who are part of the bid, and try to get a sense of the interest and enthusiasm of the community, and that’s come over really well today,” Sir Philip told the Press Association.“So everybody we’ve met was so enthusiastic, so willing, and so ambitious.“That’s exactly what we wanted from Town of Culture – to help people tell the story of their particular place and celebrate it.”The competition has set out a few guiding principles, and on behalf of the judges Sir Philip said: “We wanted to feel that a place was really sort of wanting to celebrate its own culture, but also we wanted to hear the authentic voice of that place.”He said he has come on his tour of shortlisted towns to meet the people and get a sense for each place.Read More“You want to come and see it and feel it, and talk to the communities and things,” he said.“And so far Leith is great.”Sir Philip’s Leith visit comes as Leith develops its final full submission, with residents being invited to contribute their stories, priorities and ideas for what a fitting programme to celebrate 900 years as UK Town of Culture in 2028 could look like.The bid is being coordinated by the Leith Culture Partnership charity with backing from more than 80 local and national organisations and public figures.Susie Gray and Jenny Mungall, co-directors of partnership, said it was “brilliant” to welcome Sir Phil to Leith and give him the chance to experience first hand what makes the place so special.“This bid has always been about celebrating and valuing the people who live and work here and the extraordinary culture that already exists in Leith,” they said.“Becoming the UK’s first Town of Culture would be an incredible opportunity, particularly in the year Leith celebrates its 900th birthday.“Already we know that the process is forging new partnerships and friendships, igniting new ideas and helping us to come together to think ambitiously about what we want for Leith in the years ahead.”The UK Town of Culture competition is part of the Government’s ambition to restore pride in local areas.The contenders are: Small towns: Ilfracombe, Isle of Bute, Lerwick, Sandown, Strabane, Stockton Town Centre Ward; Medium towns: Corby, Great Yarmouth, Leith, Pontypridd, Port Talbot; Large towns: Basildon, Birkenhead, Grimsby and Rotherham.Shortlisted towns will receive £60,000 each to develop their full bids, which will be assessed by the independent judging panel.One finalist will then be selected from each category with the overall winner being announced by March 2027.