Channel 4's The Piano gives amateur musicians chance to shine at rail stations including Leeds

If you’ve spotted – or even stopped to watch – a stranger tickling the ivories at a train station, you’ll likely be aware of the growing “street piano” phenomenon. It refers to the practice in which a piano is placed in a public area, with the sole aim of encouraging passers-by to stop and play for free – a trend that has become so popular in recent years that the brains behind The Great British Bake Off (Love Productions) has tapped it up for its latest show.
By Gemma Dunn
Published 7th Feb 2023, 11:45 BST

The Piano, set to air on Channel 4, hosted by Claudia Winkleman, invites talented amateur pianists to play on pianos across the UK, sharing their stories and music with the great British public. What the budding musicians don’t know is that two of the most acclaimed and successful performers in the world – Lang Lang, who is widely regarded as the greatest classical pianist of the modern era, and Mika, the platinum selling pop superstar – will be secretly watching.

The five-part series was filmed at four mainline stations across the UK – Leeds, London’s St Pancras, Glasgow Central and Birmingham New Street – with 20 amateur pianists performing at each.

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Far from the “documentary” they’re being sold, the performers have been taking part in a secret competition, with the best contestants chosen to perform in a concert at the Royal Festival Hall.

Pictured: (L-R) Lang Lang, Claudia Winkleman and Mika - with the amateur pianists behind. Credit: PA Photo/©Channel 4.Pictured: (L-R) Lang Lang, Claudia Winkleman and Mika - with the amateur pianists behind. Credit: PA Photo/©Channel 4.
Pictured: (L-R) Lang Lang, Claudia Winkleman and Mika - with the amateur pianists behind. Credit: PA Photo/©Channel 4.

It’s a nationwide search that Winkleman and her two co-stars were only too happy to lead. “I love Love Productions – I think everything they make is brilliant,” says 51-year-old Winkleman of the production company which is also responsible for The Great Pottery Throw Down and The Great British Sewing Bee. “We had a chat in 2019 before Covid, and Richard [McKerrow, co-founder and creative director of Love Productions], said: ‘Do you like the idea of people playing, but they’re not on a pedestal, there aren’t big lights, there isn’t a ta-da moment. It’s just very authentic, small and we’ll see how it goes?’

“But then he said, ‘We’ve got Mika and Lang Lang’. I was like, ‘I’m on a train to Glasgow, or wherever you need me!’”

Mika was called in at an early stage, when the premise was simply “An idea, a desire, a question”, he says. “And the question was, ‘What is the piano today?’ So let’s find out what amateur pianists are doing. Why are they playing on these pianos? Why is this becoming a thing? Let’s tell their stories. Me and Lang Lang didn’t even know each other; we met in front of the camera and everything you see just happened naturally,” recalls the Lebanese-born artist, 39, who was last seen co-hosting Eurovision. “It was a privilege to be allowed into that process. I loved the purity and the realness of it.”

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“I just love this format,” adds Chinese classical virtuoso Lang Lang, 40. “This has never happened in the classical piano world, so this will open doors for audiences and for musicians to believe music is not only for themselves, but for everyone in the community. Music brings us closer as human beings.” The Piano starts on Channel 4 on Wednesday February 15.

Related topics:Channel 4Leeds