Margaret Hodge's DCMS diary

It was certainly a lively start to the new Parliamentary term. A good settlement for DCMS in the Comprehensive Spending Review meant that we were able to announce a real terms increase in funding for the Arts Council and the national museums and galleries. It’s not so many weeks ago that the sector was being asked to model five per cent cash cuts in their income – to have turned this round so well is a tribute not just to the present – and previous – Secretaries of State, but most of all to the cultural sector itself. We lead the world in artistic and cultural excellence and nothing, as they say, succeeds like success.

In the midst of it all, after an early morning Select Committee appearance, I enjoyed an eclectic visit to Yorkshire. First stop was the wonderful York Minster, to join senior figures from the tourism industry as they launched VisitEngland. This new body will bring together the many different voices within our very successful visitor economy, to help promote England’s diverse attractions. Since becoming tourism Minister I have been struck by the fact that 80% of our tourism comes from the domestic market – surely a great testament to the richness on offer on our doorsteps, - and of course more sustainable in our efforts to mitigate climate change..

The launch couldn’t have been in a more splendid setting. On a glorious autumn afternoon the light danced around the Central Tower and the magnificent stained glass glowed. I was pleased to hear from the Dean of York Minster, the Very Reverend Keith Jones, about the painstaking restoration work, partly funded by a Lottery Heritage Fund grant, which will conserve it for future generations.

As a great fan of social history, I was fascinated by a tour of the Yorkshire Film Archive. Staff there are very focused on education and finding creative ways to make a contribution to their community. An example of this was showing archive footage such as family meal times to help disenfranchised young people with no experience of the traditional family unit. It helped them understand a concept they had sadly never witnessed.

But the highlight for me had to be a magnificent training video produced for a particular Party’s political canvassers in the1950s.
A treasure to be enjoyed bythe 2007 Canvassers as they pound the streets.

South in Sheffield it was heartbreaking to see the extent of the flood damage at the Kelham Island museum. This summer’s floods brought devastation and despair to many people. Seeing first hand the impact of the floods on the museum here in Sheffield, I was really impressed by the dedication and determination shown by those working on the restoration and conservation of the collections. I extend my thanks and admiration to all those involved, particularly
John Hamshere - Executive Director of Sheffield Industrial Museums Trust
Nick Dodd - Chief Executive of Sheffield Galleries & Museums Trust
Annie Mauger - Chief Executive, MLA Yorkshire
Kim Street - Curator of Social History, SGMT
and wish them all the best in their efforts to return to normal.

Posted by Margaret Hodge at 03:28 PM | Permalink

After an interminable court case in Manchester and Party Conference in Bournemouth we had a week-end off when we managed to catch up with films and saw four very different ones, each very enjoyable in their own way – Atonement, the Bourne Ultimatum, Two Days in Paris and The Singer. Good to be able to switch off and relax in the cinema!

But now it’s back to business as usual with a chance to see a stunning production at the Battersea Arts Centre, an engrossing show at the South Bank’s Hayward Gallery and a crafts fair that demonstrates once again just how good we are at this sort of thing in the UK. And in the middle of it all, I upgraded the ‘listing’ for a national - some would say international – architectural icon.

The Masque of the Red Death, Punch Drunk Productions’ new performance at the Battersea Arts Centre is a really thought-provoking piece of work, pushing back the frontiers of theatre and exploring innovative new ways of interaction with the audience. The Gothic surroundings of the old town hall are an apt setting for enacting Poe’s dark and mysterious pieces and, given that the (masked) audience has to roam from one set to another while following the action as best they can, it’s fair to say that none of us would have come away at the end with anything like the same experience. Sadly we had to leave before the end, but part of the adventure for us was our inability to locate an ‘Exit’ adding to the scary nature of our evening.

The Hayward Gallery’s autumn show, Painting of Modern Life, is a fascinating exhibition showing how photographic images take on a life of their own when reproduced by artists as paintings. The pictures are powerful and convey a very different experience from the photographs on which they are based with many of the images lingering in my mind long afterwards. It’s also faintly depressing to note that Andy Warhol’s famous early excursions into this area are now 50 years old – a disquieting thought on a damp evening.

I also had the privilege of opening Origin: The London Crafts Fair last week. The craft sector has long been the ‘quiet one’ in the arts world, lacking the media razzmatazz that contemporary fine art often attracts while producing an endless procession of really stunning work. The fair is a great showcase for international work and a reminder that crafts are becoming more and more important to the cultural sector, employing 36,000 people and bringing more than £800 million to the economy each year.

Finally for this week. I can report that I have upgraded the listing of Battersea Power Station from II to II*. It’s the largest brick-built structure in Europe and, with its design by Giles Gilbert Scott, is a very obvious – and conspicuous – part of our built heritage with a resonance that goes way beyond London. I can’t believe any present or future owner would want to tamper with its iconic design, but I’m very pleased to be able to give it that extra layer of protection that upgrading provides, just in case.

Posted by Margaret Hodge at 09:05 AM | Permalink