How arts and culture can plug the Covid gap for Yorkshire - Fiona Movley

Much has been written about the value of the arts and culture and the wider role it plays, not just economically but socially as part of the fabric that helps bind communities together.
Picture by Charlotte GrahamPicture by Charlotte Graham
Picture by Charlotte Graham

Cities such as Leeds, Sheffield and York have benefitted for decades, centuries even, from having a thriving cultural sector that attracts and showcases the very best talents on stage, at festivals, even street corners should the audience happen to be there. That is the beauty of the arts: it is all around us, even when we don’t realise it.

Then came along Covid-19 and everything just stopped. Theatres closed, events were cancelled and the fight for survival began whether you were an iconic city centre venue or a small community hub that only opened up every second Thursday.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

In this respect, Harrogate has suffered more than most. A town that thrives on its reputation for cultural and tourist attractions, we didn’t have other sectors to fall back on. Harrogate doesn’t have a higher education college or university to bring people in, there is no big legal, banking or IT sector that keeps ticking over even when the closed sign is hung up outside.

Perhaps just as important as the financial contribution of the arts is the social aspect that comes hand in hand with live events.

Whilst Harrogate International Festivals didn’t have a building and those overheads to worry about, it also counted against us for funding that other organisations were able to apply for.

Our events – some that people had been attending for many years and looked forward to – were suddenly halted and we lost some £850,000 of income. As well as the financial hit, our audiences were also impacted; young, old, music lovers, outdoor theatre fans, would-be writers.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Their taste for the arts may be very different but they all lost out collectively on shared experiences, knowledge and memories.

I was taken to my first live concert when I was 11 and that’s when I found my love of the arts. Imagine if there are other children out there this year who have missed their own personal window of opportunity.

And it is that loss of opportunity, social and shared experiences, that should act as a driver for us all to keep creativity and culture alive in the hardest of situations.

Despite everything we have continued to host online events even at the height of lockdown. This wouldn’t have been possible without the support of our corporate sponsors and partners who, thankfully, saw the true value in continuing events; that support means the town’s cultural scene will not have to recover from a standing start and this has allowed for some unexpected positives too.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

We were able to host the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival online this autumn and took the event into families’ living rooms all around the world.

People across Europe, Australia and America suddenly were looking up Harrogate on Google maps to find out where and who we were.

The lessons we have learnt over the last eight months will stand us in good stead for when life returns to normal, and I am sure we will continue to see a mix of virtual and live events making up future programmes. Whilst we wait to see the effect of the latest tier regime, the cultural sector also waits in the wings (almost literally) to see when it can be brought back to life.

In the meantime, we will continue to provide online events for an ever-diverse audience,.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

We cannot let this year derail the future of the arts for Harrogate or any other town in Yorkshire, it is simply too important.

Arts and culture are needed to help plug the gap that has been left by Covid-19 – whether socially, educationally or economically.

Harrogate International Festivals is hosting Berwins Salon North – a series of free TED-style talks exploring stimulating ideas in art, science and psychology. Streaming from December 10. www.harrogateinternationalfestivals.com/salon-north