It’s two days before the final judging panel to decide the next city of culture
and bid leader Abi’s last chance to perfect Stoke’s pitch.
OK, ready to go, we’re going to start with the big one, why Stoke?
We’ve experienced fantastic revolution as a place, industrial, social,
but we’ve also experienced a reversal of that and we’re very keen not to go back there.
It’s got to be now for us to make the change that we really need to
the people of the city and, to our perception.
Great.
I like your bit about how a working-class city,
keep rehearsing, keep learning, till the very last....
[Radio] A leading business expert says Stoke-on-Trent will be totally transformed
if it became city of culture in 2021.
It’s a big day in Stoke, the city of culture judges are in town
to see for themselves what the city has to offer.
Right, so, what am I doing, duck in the hand...
We could do the scene from Ghost.
We could do, you could be Demi and I’ll be Patrick.
Some familiar faces have been invited to the reception.
Yeah, everyone’s really got their best clothes on.
We need to stress home to them exactly what Stoke-on-Trent has to offer.
I mean they say oh, don’t take anything seriously like observation,
you know it’s like when people are in a job interview go,
don’t be nervous it doesn’t matter, yes it does.
We want to hear from cities themselves what they think the culture is,
and here, we talk about making things, coming together.
What do you think I'd mean for Stoke-on-Trent?
I mean the biggest thing that happens is a change in perception,
everybody starts to think of the city as something different than a media stereotype.
I just hope Stoke-on-Trent gets it.
You give it your best shot then you sit back and keep your fingers crossed
because there’s bugger all else you can do.
The bid for UK city of culture was Stoke-on-Trent’s big push to transform their city,
they wanted to change perceptions of Stoke from the inside and the outside.
The bid had some sceptics of course, but over the last year,
something has changed in the way many people in Stoke see their city.
As for perceptions from the outside, they’re about to find out
if their bid had been successful.
Tonight is the big night the winner will be announced live on prime-time TV.
The bid leader, Abi, is heading to Hull, current city of culture,
where the show will be filmed.
7.26pm they’re going to announce the winner.
I’m a bit nervous about it all really, it’s been a really long journey here.
So, we need Coventry, then we need Paisley.
Stoke-on-Trent is next.
Cheer!
We want colour and excitement.
Feeling confident, a little bit emotional.
I feel a bit nervous because, I think because the last couple of days
we’ve had such positive messages coming out of the city,
you’re almost in a bubble so I have no idea what can happen.
OK, so do you want me to shout?
Let’s say hello to Carrie, are we ready, come on, let’s do this.
Hey, we are on tenterhooks aren’t we.
The winner is ...
... Coventry.
No way.
Well done, well done.
Come on then. Let’s go that way.
We all believed it could have been Stoke-on-Trent’s name called out tonight,
and when you have a bid with so much heart it’s hard
not to feel hurt when it doesn’t quite turn out.
Let’s think of what we have achieved, Stoke-on-Trent isn’t the city it used to be,
we have a new belief in our city and there’s no going back from here.
Obviously we are naturally disappointed, but you know, well done to Coventry
and I’m pleased that it’s coming to the West Midlands.
Hello, hello... yes absolutely,
well you know, it’s massively raised the profile of the city.
And what this has done for us as a city,
nothing will ever be the same after this anyway.
Are you OK?
Yeah, I’m fine, can we go yet?
Yeah.
Stoke-on-Trent, we are Stoke-on-Trent yeah, listen, come on.
We'll keep going, we will make this city great again.
Tonight, there’s nowhere else I’d rather be.
This is not it for Stoke.
Never mind, we’ll do it on our own.
You watch this space.
I’ve deleted everyone on Facebook from Coventry.
To be fair like every city’s in the same boat,
how we deal with this is different,
I don’t know, I don’t know, people from Stoke
just get stuff done we’ve come this far.
The dream, the love affair is over.
I’m going to cry into the fucking ... thanks for giving your time to Stoke man.
We also recently had some bad news about Kamen.
Kamen has been having some personal problems and has missed some of his training course.
Next - new message.
You’ve been phoning asking about videoing Kamen, unfortunately he’s not here again today,
he wasn’t yesterday, he won’t be continuing with the course with us, I’m sorry,
so we won’t be able to help, thanks.
It’s one of them, obviously, it’s fucking just whole railway shit it’s not,
it’s not going to plan, I’ve just got a lot of crap on at the moment,
it kind of knocks you off balance man.
Kamen has been struggling to escape from the legacy of a very difficult past,
for now, it has caught up on him.
It’s one of them isn’t it, no one said it was going to be easy like, but,
even though this railway things fucked up, I haven't seen it as a knock back
and be like actually, no, fuck this I’m going to sit on my ass and do fuck all, no.
I’ve got straight back up there and I’m still fucking scowling,
hopefully I’ll get something like warehouse work and that
because it’s Christmas and that so there will be a lot of that going.
Yeah, I know I can feel things you know what I mean they’re on the up for me.
Morning.
Morning darling, how are you?
Freezing.
Well, king’s dead, long live the king as they say, do you know what I mean?
Lots of snow and no city of culture, oh, my gosh.
What are we going to do?
Hey, us plate turners are a bit turned off aren’t we this morning I suppose.
I thought, winning the city of culture could be a catalyst to accelerate Stoke
into a new future, so that’s why I’m gutted.
I would be interested to see what happens, I guess we’ve got to find another catalyst
as it were, but maybe we’re the catalyst, that’s us.
The people who made Stoke a world-beating city in the past
used their creativity and hard work,
their collaboration and pride.
And, they used the materials that were right there under their feet.
This is what they have to do all over again.
We changed the world from this city around things we created and the little experiments,
what we’re doing is almost bringing it back to life again in a way to say people,
don’t you remember.
Thanks for coming down, we’re making some bricks.
That’s amazing.
It’s not about the thing, but it's, let people know I'm there.
I don’t see an empty flat piece of land that’s rubble where there’s no building,
I try not to dwell on that, I think one could go there.
It just shows, we’re still here we’re still a community,
we can’t be beaten.
I’m a proud person, do you know what I mean, I don’t like asking for help,
I like going out and doing shit for myself.
We’ve got to look after ourselves I’m afraid now.
We’ve all got to work together to make things better.
Often Stoke can be described by deficit, if we measure something by its assets
we’ve turned the world round haven’t we?