Arts Diary: Will Marriott

Tony, as Sir Antony likes to be called, was in fine form and you can read a full interview in the coming weeks in Culture, but Coun Scriven told a lovely story we thought we'd share.

Coun Scriven was at the launch of the renewal of the city's museums relationship with London's V&A Museum.

He had been talking that morning, he said, to a group of disinterested youngsters from a local school. When he told them, however, that their local museum would be hosting an exhibition called The Golden Age of Couture, featuring the designs of Christian Dior, apparently their eyes lit up.

Oh the power of the Little Black Dress.

With their "too cool for school" attitude, we wonder what Alex Turner and Matt Helders will make of high praise indeed from Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy for the pop "poetry" of the Arctic Monkeys as she prepared to stage a literary Live Aid for the victims of the Haiti earthquake.

Duffy, who hopes that Poetry Live For Haiti in London on Saturday will raise thousands of pounds, said the Arctic Monkeys were "great lyric writers".

She sang the band's praises after being asked whether any modern artists bridged the gap between pop and poetry in the way Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen and John Lennon had done. "Leonard Cohen's songs are poems – I saw him twice when he was touring here last year – Bob Dylan writes poems and the Arctic Monkeys write poems," she said. "They (the Arctic Monkeys) are great lyric writers."

Leeds's Leigh Francis has revealed he is writing a Keith Lemon film. The comedian behind the Bo Selecta series said he was hoping for the green light for the film featuring his alter-ego.

He said: "Paddy McGuinness is going to play Keith's cousin and I want Anna Friel to be in it and I've spoken to Martine McCutcheon and I've spoken to Pixie Lott but no one has said yes yet, apart from Paddy, but no one has said no yet either." Leigh described the plot, saying: "It's about him becoming successful, then losing it all and becoming a tramp and then realising he was happier when he lived in Leeds and he was a big man in a small pond."

Remind you of anyone, Leigh?

we can reveal that larger-than-life star Phil Jupitus will be coming to Bradford for a fortnight in November, to take on the role of Edna Turnblad in Hairspray.

The big comedian, team captain on comedy quiz show Never Mind the Buzzcocks, played the role to great acclaim in the West End.

He will step into Edna's dress – sported by John Travolta in the movie version – when the national tour reaches Bradford.

Arts Diary saw Jupitus perform with The Blockheads, and his Edna should be well worth seeing.