the world according to phil

By Catherine Jones on Nov 29, 07 09:09 AM

I sat in on an "in conversation" with Phil Redmond at the World Museum last night where he talked about Grange Hill, Brookie and - of course - Capital of Culture.
Actually, I almost missed the start when I managed to go to the wrong venue!
I wondered why all the lights were off at the Maritime Museum and had to make a mad dash all the way to William Brown Street, slipping in as NML boss David Fleming was half way through his introduction.

Phil was "in conversation" with Echo editor Alastair Machray about his life, career, 2008 and his Open Culture and Cultural Clearing initiatives.
I remember as a child coming home from school and settling down in front of the TV to watch Tucker and co on Grange Hill, so it was interesting to hear about the Redmond of 30 years ago as well as the Redmond of today.
He spent five years as a quantity surveyor, but had his "Damascene" moment while going through overtime sheets for work on the Lower Lane police station and jacked it all in in favour of telly instead.
Merseyside Police's loss has subsequently become Merseyside's gain I suppose.
Redmond also described how he was aghast at the wastage in terms of time and money on the BBC sets of the late 70s/early 80s and when it came to pitching Brookie to Channel 4 bosses he went out and bought his own street of homes to save money.
He revealed: "I was on this housing estate in Croxteth and asked how much were the houses.
"I was told £26,000 each. So I said, 'I'll have all 13.""
Now of course, his time is taken up on what has been billed The Great Project, whose twists and turns some may also liken to a kind of soap opera.
Redmond is overseeing the cultural programme side, but denies it's a poison challice, paying tribute instead to the work and enthusiasm of Culture Company troops on the ground.
His view is there's little that needs fixing apart from the perception of what Capital of Culture will be, which is, according to him, a "great programme" which will make people all over the world aware of what Liverpool does all the time.
"Things have been happening before 2008 and they will happen after 2008" is his reasoning.
And of course the watchword has now become "legacy" - or in Redmond's terms, a sustainable legacy - Capital of Culture Plus.
Legacy is important. But let's not let it distract us from enjoying the next 12 months as well.