To the outsider, to those who either come into Liverpool once every year for a stag or hen night or the chance to lose heavily at Aintree, Liverpool may well seem a city of contrasts, a place in which many have pre-conceived ideas of how its people act, play, work and enjoy life. However to be an outsider who embraces the city and the surrounding areas with every fibre of being, that’s when the city really shows its vibrancy and complete uniqueness.
It well maybe in England but it was astonishing that so many people who live in the city and who are imbibed with the sense of fair play and complete disregard for all things that come out of the Westminster Village were commenting on the Scottish Independence vote with more passion than an Everton fan talking about the club’s chances in Europe this season. It is that spirit of independent thought that runs through the city and gets hold of anyone who makes the city their home and installs a terrific attitude everyday to those fortunate to have been born within a bus ride of Queen’s Square.
With so many venues in Liverpool able to cater to theatre and music, the city has so much more to offer than most in the U.K. and yet it doesn’t seem to deter developers who look upon the city with eyes as wide as saucers. The true home of British Pop Culture seems to have had a kind of war declared upon it by those who wish to see it turned into a place of identikit shops and bars and catering more and more to a select few people.
In 2014 the much loved and iconic venues of St. Luke’s Church was under threat and the memory of all those that the city lost in bloodshed of the Second World War, the permanent reminder to make the most of each day, nearly came under the boot of so called progress. The home of countless cultural events, acoustic afternoons and the superb Liverpool Calling, was nearly lost to Liverpool. Others nearly shared the same outlook but have been so far reprieved, however the creative hub of Mello Mello was lost and with it an evening in which to savour. How many more like Mello Mello will be lost in the coming years is anyone’s guess but for the sheer sake of diversity, of the sheer individuality that the city holds dear to its heart, it must be fought on all counts.
Liverpool’s natural love of poetry and all things poetic has undergone resurgence and in the bistro of the new Everyman Theatre, the wordsmiths who happily follow in the footsteps of Brian Patten, Roger McGough, Adrian Henri and the recently honoured Carol Ann Duffy, have another venue in which to call home.
With the theatre in mind, the sad announcement of Mr. Graeme Philips’ retirement in 2015 as Creative Director of the Unity Theatre was one that the venue’s patrons understandably thinking of the passing of time. With the Royal Court Theatre beginning its second phase of renewal, the fringe theatres, including 81 Renshaw Street which hosts Grin Theatre’s very enjoyable monologues and the Lantern Theatre going from strength to strength, there has never been a better time to take in a show in the city.
This is abundantly clear with the re-opening of the Everyman Theatre, whose first production when the last two years of hard work was finally completed was the superbly directed Twelfth Night, was awarded the much coveted and absolutely deserved Sterling Prize. A city is only as good as the art it produces, and whether it is in its music, its artists, such as Love Artuk or photographers such as David Munn, Adrian Wharton, Sakura or the impressive artist who goes under the name of Moody Me or the plays and productions that get put on in its many theatres, Liverpool is surely blessed…it can only be hoped that the people of the city keep it that way.
Top Ten Theatre 2014.
- 1. Twelfth Night (Everyman Theatre)
- 2. Under Milkwood (Playhouse Theatre)
- 3. My Perfect Mind (Unity Theatre)
- 4. This May Hurt A Bit (Playhouse Theatre)
- 5. Canterbury Tales (L.U.D.S, University of Liverpool)
- 6. One Man, Two Guvenors (Empire Theatre)
- 7. Gaffer (Unity Theatre)
- 8. Three, Two, F**k (L.I.P.A.)
- 9. Dreaming of a Barry White Christmas (Echo Arena, Auditorium)
- 10. Once A Catholic (Royal Court Theatre)
Best Actor (Male): Paul Duckworth (Twelfth Night)
Best Actor (Female): Jodie McNee (Twelfth Night)
Best supporting Actor: Paul Hunter (My Perfect Mind)
Best Director: Gemma Bodinetz (Twelfth Night)
Best Production outside Liverpool Juvenalia (Edinburgh Fringe)
Best Comedy Actor: Simon Hedger (Gaffer) and Keddy Sutton (Dreaming Of a Barry White Christmas)
Special mentions and thanks for services to theatre Graeme Philips (Unity Theatre) and Rio Matchett (Liverpool University Drama Society).
Top Ten Films of 2014.
- 1. Grand Budapest Hotel
- 2. Jersey Boys
- 3. Pride
- 4. 12 Years A Slave
- 5. The Imitation Game
- 6. Locke
- 7. Dallas Buyers Club
- 8. Venus In Fur
- 9. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
- 10. Inside Llewyn Davis
Films that should never have been allowed to see the light of day (2014)
- 1. Serena
- 2. Bad Neighbours
- 3. Dumb and Dumber To
Best Actor (Male): Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years A Slave)
Best Actor (Female): Imelda Staunton (Pride)
Best Actor in trying circumstances The Eagle used in Serena
Music is Liverpool’s greatest attribute, it conquers almost all and its musicians are given that extra dimension of having an audience who cherish them. To see a live gig in Liverpool is an honour. It doesn’t matter the size of the venue or what that space is otherwise used for, Liverpool is live music, the voice of the streets, of venues such as Leaf, the Echo Arena, Zanzibar, Hannah’s Bar, The Academy or Studio 2 on Parr Street resonate with the sound of music. Imagine growing up in a village or the smallest of towns, the closest big city an hour’s bus ride away and the last bus home starts off just after seven, for those people, the city of Liverpool makes up for.
To entice some really big names, outstanding legends, is one thing, to have The Who, Steve Hackett, The Human League, Peter Gabriel and American giants The Eagles come and perform is astonishing but it is to the less well known artists to whom the music scene thrives and flourishes upon.
There are so many playing away, learning, writing and entertaining, that any list compiled would take up more room than an airship being placed in the Town Hall. Groups and musicians such as Me and Deboe, The Mono LPs, Joe Symes and The Loving Kind, Ragz Nordset, Alan O’Hare, Eleanor Nelly, Matt Breen, Vanessa Murray, Stephen Langstaff, The Science of The Lamps, Bolshy, Natalie McCool, Robert Vincent, Only Child, Mersey Wylie, Black Diamond, Laura James, Anna Corcoron and a plethora of outstanding young musicians, can stand with absolute pride as they emulate the legends of the 70s, 80s and 90s such as Ian McNabb and The Icicle Works, Ian Prowse and his tremendous bands Amsterdam and Pele, the adorable Space, Pete Wylie, The Lightning Seeds and adopted and much loved Scouser Julian Cope.
Liverpool is a city built on music more so than other in the U.K. and when you hear someone say there is nothing good anymore going on unless it’s a big name band coming to the city, grab them by the hand, take them to Palm Sugar and watch three young artists a week, under the keen and wonderful eye of Little Atoms, show them Studio 2, Mellowtone at Leaf, The Academy, Ian Prowse’s Monday Night Club on Mathew Street and a whole host of others and then ask them why they think there is nothing going on. Music is everywhere, it just needs people to stop watching television night after night in which to be seen and enjoyed.
Top Fifteen Gigs of 2014.*
- 1. Me and Deboe (Zanzibar and The Baltic Social)
- 2. Kathryn Williams (Leaf)
- 3. Dreaming of Kate (Epstein Theatre)
- 4. Jimmy and the Revolvers (Studio 2, Parr Street)
- 5. The Stranglers (02 Academy)
- 6. The Eagles (Echo Arena)
- 7. Peter Gabriel (Echo Arena)
- 8. Pete Wylie (Zanzibar)
- 9. Amsterdam (The Flapper, Birmingham)
- 10. Molotov Jukebox (Kazimier)
- 11. Ian McNabb and Cold Shoulder (South and City College, Birmingham)
- 12. Emma Stevens (Zanzibar)
- 13. Thom Morecroft and Band (Unity Theatre)
- 14. Steve Hackett (Symphony Hall, Birmingham)
- 15. Fast Camels (Cavern, International Pop Overthrow)
Notable mentions
Alison Green (Cavern, International Pop Overthrow), Black Diamond (Studio2, Parr Street), Elijah James (Zanzibar)
Top Twenty albums of 2014.
- 1. Danny Bryant Temperature Rising
- 2. Joanne Shaw Taylor Dirty Talk
- 3. Larry Miller Soldier on the Line
- 4. Elijah James Nobody Important
- 5. The Love Dimension Create and Consume
- 6. David Crosby Croz
- 7. Sinead O’Connor I’m Not Busy, I’m the Boss
- 8. Jimmy Barnes Hindsight
- 9. The Twang Neon Twang
- 10. Nicola Benedetti Homecoming
- 11. Ian Anderson Homo Eraticus
- 12. Laurence Jones Temptation
- 13. Rhys Marsh Sentiment
- 14. Flying Colours Second Nature
- 15. Jack White Lazeretto
- 16. Amsterdam Who Loves You Baby?
- 17. Thorbjorn Risager Too Many Roads
- 18. Me and Deboe Here They Come
- 19. The Proof 100% The Proof
- 20. Only Child From Muddy Water To Higher Ground
Ones to watch: Elijah James, Niamh Jones, Black Diamond, Shannen Bamford, Eleanor Nelly.
Best Re-issue Supertramp, Crime of the Century.
Jason Bonnar’s Game of the year: Velocity 2x (PS4)
Poem of the year: My Friend Jackson by Barney Eliot.
People of the Year: Margaret Aspinall, Trevor Hicks, Gary Millar.
Like any city in the world, Liverpool has its good and bad. The good though outweighs the appalling enormously. With its access to art, theatre, music and poetry, 2014 has been one in which the city and its people has had access to more than ever before, don’t let those with blackened greedy souls take it away.
Ian D. Hall