Margaret Hodge's DCMS diary

I was pleased to be able to be at the first night of the new season at Covent Garden. I enjoyed seeing for the first time Gluck’s Iphigénie en Tauride in a very strong setting for a powerful tragedy and it was great to see the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment performing at Covent Garden.

Again I was privileged to meet many of those who work backstage after the production and to get a clearer sense of the challenges of staging the whole Ring Cycle alongside the Gluck, with the demand for rehearsal time and performances requiring hard work by many enthusiastic people. I enjoyed speaking to Pat Pursey, Nick Havell and John Turner among the many I met.

Last week I also chaired my first meeting of the Culture and Creativity Advisory Forum. This spirit-sapping title in fact covers a highly important group: the thirty or so cultural leaders from across the UK who now regularly meet to thrash out the objectives of the Cultural Olympiad which, for me, will be an absolutely key part of ensuring that 2012 is more than just a few weeks of glorious sport. Bill Morris leads the cultural team from LOCOG and he impressed me once again with his talent for grasping the grand sweep of things. He also reminded us that, God willing, 2012 itself will also be the year we celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. Something tells me London – and the UK - will be the best place in the world to be in five short years time.

I’ve been trying over the last few weeks to meet members of the media that cover DCMS issues. The relationship between the press and Government is not – nor should ever be – too cosy. Scepticism and rigorous investigation are good things and, for me, they are an important part of a free and open democratic society. So a cup of tea in my office with The Sunday Times’s Richard Brooks on Tuesday gave me a welcome chance to catch up on the culture media’s preoccupations. Richard is an articulate advocate for the arts in this country and was quick to challenge me that, apart from Culture Ministers, other members of the Government seemed – to him, at least – almost embarrassed to be seen enjoying the arts. It’s an interesting point but not really true, I think. I mentioned to him that Harriet Harman, Patricia Hewitt and I often go to the opera together, as do most of my Government colleagues. It’s part of normal life for people who are fortunate enough – as we are – to be working in a city, and in an era, that is seeing a real cultural revolution of excellence and excitement. Long may it continue.

Posted by Margaret Hodge at 12:47 PM | Permalink

Monday saw me at The Albert Hall on a balmy evening to marvel at Daniel Barenboim and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra performing Schubert’s 5th symphony and Bruckner’s 4th. It was a glorious evening which demonstrated yet again what a fantastic institution the Proms are. There’s a lot of fuss (rightly) made about the Last Night each year but for me it is the season as a whole that means the most. A wonderful part of summer in London, the Proms had the hang of broadening access decades before it became a Government staple. By the way, Barenboim was seven when he first performed in public, and Schubert’s 5th (not his 1st, his 5th) symphony was written when the composer was just 19.

I was reminded of this on Wednesday morning when I locked horns with Janet Street Porter on Radio 4’s National Treasures debate. The HLF’s Liz Forgan and Christopher Frayling from the Arts Council were alongside me describing how they make decisions about who to fund, but for Janet it was all too ‘safe’, too ‘middle aged, white and middle class’. For my part, I think the funding system works pretty well. Decisions are taken by experts, not politicians, and access for all is hard-wired into the system, but Janet’s point nagged at me: would a modern day Schubert get the support and the platform to have completed five symphonies before they’d even left their teens?

Also last week I had the pleasure of launching another hardy annual: Heritage Open Days. The launch took place in Stoke at Burleigh Pottery.

Burleigh Pottery is one of the last working Victorian pottery factories left in England and I was lucky enough to be shown around by the factory owners. Established in 1851 the factory produces earthenware products with probably their most characteristic piece being the blue and white ‘Burleigh Ware’ still produced using traditional methods.

They also gave me the chance to try my hand at decorating a piece of Burleigh Ware using cut transfers, however. I’m not sure how well my technique went down with the craftsmen and women I met that have been doing the job for more than 10 or 20 years. Interestingly, most of the factory is run using a remarkable 1800’s steam engine and the sound of the steam pumping through the walls reminded me of Willi Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. Other hidden treasures included a steam run drying rack which had been operating for over a century, and a labyrinth of shelves in the loft of the factory holding countless moulds for toby jugs, jelly moulds, plates and cups.

Burleigh Pottery is just one of the 3,589 building and places across England – an all-time record - which threw open their doors at the weekend, providing free access and events. I had a wonderful morning exploring the factory and I hope that the million or so visitors that took part across the country had just as much fun.

Posted by Margaret Hodge at 12:27 PM | Permalink

I was delighted to see the final performance of Carmen Jones at the Royal Festival Hall - a hugely energetic, exuberant and enjoyable production, making great use of the space and providing the opportunity for us to appreciate the talents of many of our black artists.

I was grateful to the creative and production team for spending time with me before the performance and was pleased to meet Simon Ash, the Company Manager, Andrew Quick the Production Manager, David Curl the Stage Manager his deputy James Bartnum and the two Assistant Managers Carole Kuster and Lee Henderson.

I heard about the challenges of being one of the first productions after the refurbishment and negotiating plasterers trying to plaster a wall whilst the cast and production team - numbering over 100 - were working to put together an ambitious production!

Space is clearly hugely challenging when one tries to adapt the concert hall for musical theatre and that was wonderfully managed, one of the triumphs in the refurbished Festival Hall are the acoustics, and ensuring a proper balance between the first class orchestra on stage and the talented cast was one of the few difficult challenges which again was brilliantly negotiated by everybody.

Posted by Margaret Hodge at 03:04 PM | Permalink