0:00:02 > 0:00:05- CROWD:- Five, four, three, two, one...
0:00:05 > 0:00:09CHEERING
0:00:09 > 0:00:13The start of 2017 was a bit special for my home city
0:00:13 > 0:00:17because this year, Hull was crowned the UK's City of Culture.
0:00:19 > 0:00:22The opening ceremony saw a dazzling light show
0:00:22 > 0:00:26with Hull's biggest moments from its recent past
0:00:26 > 0:00:28beamed onto buildings across the city...
0:00:32 > 0:00:35..kicking off a year-long arts festival
0:00:35 > 0:00:37boasting hundreds of events.
0:00:37 > 0:00:41As a comedian, I used to have a joke that went -
0:00:41 > 0:00:43"You've got London that hosted the Olympics
0:00:43 > 0:00:47"and Hull that hosted Zumba classes you can smoke in."
0:00:47 > 0:00:49But, to be honest, I wouldn't say it now.
0:00:49 > 0:00:52You see, Hull's always been the butt of the joke -
0:00:52 > 0:00:55I've gathered most of my material here -
0:00:55 > 0:00:58but it's all changed now with the City of Culture.
0:00:58 > 0:01:00We're cosmopolitan, don't you know?
0:01:00 > 0:01:03Most of us used to think it was really fish and chips and rugby,
0:01:03 > 0:01:05and then realising there's great history,
0:01:05 > 0:01:07there's great culture.
0:01:07 > 0:01:09So many great things have come from Hull
0:01:09 > 0:01:11and I think it has a lot to do with the fact
0:01:11 > 0:01:15that we are single-minded and stubborn and outspoken,
0:01:15 > 0:01:17and we won't be put down.
0:01:17 > 0:01:20If you come here, you end up making art.
0:01:20 > 0:01:22You end up doing something creative.
0:01:22 > 0:01:27But Hull has got more than most and it's time that was celebrated,
0:01:27 > 0:01:30not just by the people of Hull but by everybody.
0:01:34 > 0:01:36It's finally our chance to show off,
0:01:36 > 0:01:39so we've hoovered around, put on our best frock,
0:01:39 > 0:01:43and we're ready to host the best arts festival ever.
0:01:43 > 0:01:47We've got a saying up here, "It's never dull in Hull."
0:01:47 > 0:01:49Welcome to Hull!
0:01:54 > 0:01:57Just to attune your ears to the accent
0:01:57 > 0:01:59cos it is quite strong.
0:01:59 > 0:02:01Erm...if you can repeat after me...
0:02:01 > 0:02:04Mama mia.
0:02:04 > 0:02:06- ALL:- Mama mia.
0:02:06 > 0:02:08And that's telling your mother you've arrived.
0:02:08 > 0:02:10LAUGHTER
0:02:10 > 0:02:14'I've long ribbed my home city for its accent and quirks,
0:02:14 > 0:02:17'but in all seriousness, I'm so proud of my roots.'
0:02:18 > 0:02:20So when this happened...
0:02:20 > 0:02:24The UK City of Culture 2017 is Hull.
0:02:24 > 0:02:26CHEERING
0:02:26 > 0:02:27..well, I was over the moon.
0:02:27 > 0:02:29It felt like it was our time.
0:02:29 > 0:02:32We deserved it and, really, we needed this title.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43If you don't know us, our city, officially Kingston upon Hull,
0:02:43 > 0:02:46sits halfway up England on the East Yorkshire coast.
0:02:46 > 0:02:49Here we are.
0:02:49 > 0:02:54For centuries, we've been a thriving port and a gateway to Europe,
0:02:54 > 0:02:56but our city's weathered some tough times.
0:02:58 > 0:03:00With us being an east coast port town,
0:03:00 > 0:03:01in the Second World War,
0:03:01 > 0:03:04we were a sitting duck for German bombers.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07It was the most bombed city outside of London.
0:03:09 > 0:03:14More than 90% of our housing was damaged in the Blitz,
0:03:14 > 0:03:18but gritty resilience is what we do best here.
0:03:18 > 0:03:23After all, this is a city built on the tough industry of fishing.
0:03:23 > 0:03:27Once it was all trawler fleets here,
0:03:27 > 0:03:29but, in the 1970s, new fishing restrictions
0:03:29 > 0:03:32in the North Atlantic wreaked havoc.
0:03:32 > 0:03:35In this city, if you weren't a trawlerman,
0:03:35 > 0:03:37then chances are you were a docker,
0:03:37 > 0:03:40or a fish house worker or a shipbuilder.
0:03:40 > 0:03:42So when the industry collapsed,
0:03:42 > 0:03:46literally thousands of people lost their jobs almost overnight.
0:03:47 > 0:03:51The '70s and '80s were a tough time for Hull.
0:03:51 > 0:03:53But even during its darkest days,
0:03:53 > 0:03:55our city has always been an inspiration,
0:03:55 > 0:03:57a haven, even, for artists.
0:04:02 > 0:04:05There's something about being by the sea,
0:04:05 > 0:04:07being on the edge of things,
0:04:07 > 0:04:10that gives the city and its creativity
0:04:10 > 0:04:12a really unique spirit.
0:04:12 > 0:04:15My mum's a playwright, so I grew up with theatre in Hull,
0:04:15 > 0:04:19but the art scene has been hidden away, to a certain extent,
0:04:19 > 0:04:21without much funding or recognition.
0:04:22 > 0:04:25But finally that's changing.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27We have a new district
0:04:27 > 0:04:29with galleries and music studios opening up
0:04:29 > 0:04:32in disused warehouses in the old docks area.
0:04:32 > 0:04:34Hipster-style, shall we say?
0:04:38 > 0:04:40But not all our art galleries are so new.
0:04:43 > 0:04:47Ferens has been our much-loved city art gallery since the 1920s
0:04:47 > 0:04:52thanks to this dude - Thomas Robinson Ferens.
0:04:52 > 0:04:55Ferens got rich managing a local factory
0:04:55 > 0:04:58that made cleaning products and disinfectant
0:04:58 > 0:05:01and, with the money, he paid for this building to be built
0:05:01 > 0:05:03and filled it with lots of lovely artwork.
0:05:03 > 0:05:06So, thank you, Mr Ferens, and your Dettol.
0:05:09 > 0:05:10I don't mean to boast,
0:05:10 > 0:05:13but we've got our fair share of big names here.
0:05:13 > 0:05:15Check these out.
0:05:28 > 0:05:32I like this one, although I wouldn't want to meet him on a dark night.
0:05:34 > 0:05:37And this sculpture has been a favourite of mine since childhood.
0:05:46 > 0:05:51For the City of Culture, Ferens has undergone a £4.5m revamp.
0:05:51 > 0:05:55Throughout the year, we've got special loans on display,
0:05:55 > 0:05:59like these Francis Bacon paintings of a so-called screaming pope.
0:06:02 > 0:06:04And later this year,
0:06:04 > 0:06:07the Turner Prize will be hosted here.
0:06:08 > 0:06:12But right now, these galleries are showing off work by local artists
0:06:12 > 0:06:14in what's called the Open Exhibition,
0:06:14 > 0:06:15now in its 50th year.
0:06:18 > 0:06:20My granny and grandad were artists
0:06:20 > 0:06:23and they used to enter the Ferens Open Exhibition when I was a kid,
0:06:23 > 0:06:25so it was a really exciting time.
0:06:25 > 0:06:29This year, there was nearly 2,000 entries from the region.
0:06:29 > 0:06:32It just goes to show how much creative talent there is here.
0:06:42 > 0:06:44I've found my favourite.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47There's something about this, it makes me feel real comforting.
0:06:47 > 0:06:50I think she'd make really good roast potatoes.
0:07:00 > 0:07:03'One of the judges this year was actress Maureen Lipman,
0:07:03 > 0:07:06'another daughter of Hull.'
0:07:06 > 0:07:09Maureen, you were asked to judge
0:07:09 > 0:07:13the Hull Ferens Art Gallery Open Exhibition.
0:07:13 > 0:07:16How did you find that?
0:07:16 > 0:07:17Well, it was fun.
0:07:17 > 0:07:18It was a...
0:07:18 > 0:07:20A busy day.
0:07:20 > 0:07:24There was thousands, so it was a long day,
0:07:24 > 0:07:28but we all agreed about everything, which was a bit disappointing.
0:07:28 > 0:07:32What's extraordinary is the materials that people use, that's...
0:07:32 > 0:07:34The things they can do with wood,
0:07:34 > 0:07:36the things they can do with ceramics,
0:07:36 > 0:07:39the things they can do with etching and egg tempera,
0:07:39 > 0:07:42- and stuff that you only read about. - Hmm.- Erm...
0:07:42 > 0:07:46It's the variety and the fact that people you know
0:07:46 > 0:07:52have, sort of, enriched their lives by just...painting, drawing,
0:07:52 > 0:07:54just looking in a different way.
0:07:54 > 0:07:56It was a lovely competition
0:07:56 > 0:07:58and I know the Ferens Art Gallery as well.
0:07:58 > 0:08:01I had taken my gentleman friend
0:08:01 > 0:08:04to see the portrait of me by Humphrey Ocean,
0:08:04 > 0:08:07which last was seen in the canteen,
0:08:07 > 0:08:10curling up, with the smell of egg on it, but...
0:08:10 > 0:08:13Then, when I went, it had been down in the vaults.
0:08:13 > 0:08:16But now I'm told that it's out, so I'm thrilled about that.
0:08:16 > 0:08:18And, of course, I had quite a history
0:08:18 > 0:08:19with the Ferens Art Gallery
0:08:19 > 0:08:21because my father's shop,
0:08:21 > 0:08:23Maurice Lipman, gentleman's outfitters,
0:08:23 > 0:08:28was two doors from it, separated only by a fish shop.
0:08:28 > 0:08:31So often I would go into the Ferens and I would always go to see,
0:08:31 > 0:08:32not the Frans Hals,
0:08:32 > 0:08:35which is the famous Portrait of a Young Woman -
0:08:35 > 0:08:39she's fantastic, and their greatest painting, probably -
0:08:39 > 0:08:40I would go to see
0:08:40 > 0:08:42Meredith Frampton's lady playing cards,
0:08:42 > 0:08:46which was very Art Deco and very stark...very 1930s.
0:08:46 > 0:08:49And I have it in my hall,
0:08:49 > 0:08:52as I have a picture of the front of city square there, yeah.
0:08:52 > 0:08:54Cos you can take the girl out of Hull,
0:08:54 > 0:08:57but you cannot necessarily take Hull out of the girl.
0:08:57 > 0:08:58No, that's very true.
0:08:58 > 0:09:00Or get rid of the accent, in my case.
0:09:00 > 0:09:05- Well, no, you are a dead loss in that department, love.- I know!
0:09:05 > 0:09:09When I went to drama school, and I got into doing improvisations
0:09:09 > 0:09:11- and stuff...- Hmm.
0:09:11 > 0:09:13..and I went back to the Hull New Theatre
0:09:13 > 0:09:16and I saw something, and there's a long, long bar.
0:09:16 > 0:09:20And I said to the manager, "This is an incredible space", I said.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23"Have you ever thought of doing improvisations here?"
0:09:23 > 0:09:25And he said, "Aye, we are improving it gradually."
0:09:25 > 0:09:28THEY LAUGH
0:09:30 > 0:09:35Maureen isn't the only theatrical talent to hail from Hull.
0:09:35 > 0:09:39The playwright Richard Bean grew up just down the road
0:09:39 > 0:09:42and has gone on to pen smash hits like One Man, Two Guvnors,
0:09:42 > 0:09:45a hilarious adaptation of an Italian farce
0:09:45 > 0:09:49about the antics of an out-of-work musician.
0:09:49 > 0:09:51APPLAUSE
0:09:52 > 0:09:57Does he prefer eating or...making love?
0:09:58 > 0:10:01LAUGHTER
0:10:01 > 0:10:04It's a tough one that, isn't it?! I don't know!
0:10:04 > 0:10:06And now, for the City of Culture,
0:10:06 > 0:10:10Richard has a new treat in store for us.
0:10:10 > 0:10:12The Hypocrite will play at Hull Truck
0:10:12 > 0:10:16until the end of March, before transferring to the RSC,
0:10:16 > 0:10:19and rehearsals have been underway in a local hall,
0:10:19 > 0:10:21with Caroline Quentin among the cast.
0:10:24 > 0:10:28It's a farce about how Hull started the English Civil War
0:10:28 > 0:10:31and, no, that's not a joke - that's a fact.
0:10:31 > 0:10:34- IN A FRENCH ACCENT:- Then the English Civil war starts now.
0:10:34 > 0:10:38Who will make the first advance?!
0:10:38 > 0:10:41The plot revolves around a real historical figure,
0:10:41 > 0:10:44Sir John Hotham, a Governor of Hull -
0:10:44 > 0:10:47here played by Mark Addy.
0:10:47 > 0:10:52In 1642, Sir John closed the city gates on King Charles I
0:10:52 > 0:10:56in an act of defiance that kicked off the English Civil War.
0:10:56 > 0:11:00SHOUTING
0:11:03 > 0:11:07That sort of worked. Could we do that again, please?
0:11:07 > 0:11:09I'm off to meet Richard in a local pub.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12This building used to be the Governor's house
0:11:12 > 0:11:15and so it was within these very walls that Sir John
0:11:15 > 0:11:18hatched his plot against the King.
0:11:18 > 0:11:23I mean, growing up in Hull, I knew that story and I enjoyed that story
0:11:23 > 0:11:25because it's kind of, "Oh, yeah, we're kind of dissident,
0:11:25 > 0:11:27"we're rebellious."
0:11:27 > 0:11:29But when I started reading it,
0:11:29 > 0:11:32- it started reading like a French farce...- Right.
0:11:32 > 0:11:38..because...Sir John Hotham takes the town for Parliament
0:11:38 > 0:11:40and...as soon as...
0:11:40 > 0:11:42Pretty much as soon as he's taken the town
0:11:42 > 0:11:46and refused the King, he starts having regrets.
0:11:46 > 0:11:52And the next 14 months or so is him and his son basically scheming
0:11:52 > 0:11:55to give Hull and the munitions to the King.
0:11:55 > 0:11:57This is why it's called The Hypocrite.
0:11:57 > 0:11:59That's why it's called The Hypocrite.
0:11:59 > 0:12:01And we follow him through...
0:12:01 > 0:12:05Eventually he's executed by Parliament, actually, in 1645.
0:12:05 > 0:12:08But he would have been executed by the King,
0:12:08 > 0:12:10if the King had won the English Civil War,
0:12:10 > 0:12:12so that's why he's a, kind of, double traitor
0:12:12 > 0:12:15and an interesting character to drive...drive a play.
0:12:15 > 0:12:20Sir John Hotham, I'm arresting you for treachery to Parliament.
0:12:20 > 0:12:22What is the nature of this treachery?
0:12:22 > 0:12:26A conspiracy to surrender the town to the papists.
0:12:26 > 0:12:30Captain, my dear chap, whatever do you mean?
0:12:30 > 0:12:32I see it a lot in your work,
0:12:32 > 0:12:36and I've seen it in other Hull writers,
0:12:36 > 0:12:42that...the ability to make an audience laugh
0:12:42 > 0:12:46and then instantly make them cry.
0:12:46 > 0:12:50I find...I found, growing up, that there's a dryness,
0:12:50 > 0:12:54and a kind of dourness and a dryness,
0:12:54 > 0:12:58in people who are consistently trying to make you laugh,
0:12:58 > 0:12:59but their face doesn't show it.
0:12:59 > 0:13:05You know, it's...it's a kind of Buster Keaton thing,
0:13:05 > 0:13:06going on in Hull.
0:13:06 > 0:13:10I think I am indebted to the city for...for that.
0:13:10 > 0:13:11What about you? Cos...
0:13:11 > 0:13:14Yeah, no, the same and...
0:13:14 > 0:13:17I think, you know, the genetic humour,
0:13:17 > 0:13:20I'm sure that is very dark.
0:13:20 > 0:13:21That kind of fatalism mixed with...
0:13:21 > 0:13:24"Well, there's nowt you can do about it, is there? So, you know..."
0:13:24 > 0:13:26- No.- Just get on with it, you know? - Yeah, yeah.
0:13:26 > 0:13:30When we got awarded Hull City of Culture,
0:13:30 > 0:13:33I think it was the weekend after Hull City were playing.
0:13:33 > 0:13:36We were 3-0 down at home or something daft like that,
0:13:36 > 0:13:38and then Hull City fans started chanting,
0:13:38 > 0:13:41"You're only here for the culture.
0:13:41 > 0:13:44"Here for the culture.
0:13:44 > 0:13:47"You're only here for the culture."
0:13:47 > 0:13:49Erm... Which I think is a great...
0:13:49 > 0:13:52It kind of sums up Hull humour, you know?
0:13:52 > 0:13:55"Yeah, we might be losing, but we're going to have a laugh."
0:13:59 > 0:14:03I love the dryness of the humour in my home city
0:14:03 > 0:14:05and I think it's something that can be found in the work
0:14:05 > 0:14:08of our most famous cultural figure -
0:14:08 > 0:14:09the poet Phillip Larkin,
0:14:09 > 0:14:12who is commemorated with a statue in the station.
0:14:16 > 0:14:20Larkin wasn't actually from Hull but lived in the city for 30 years,
0:14:20 > 0:14:23working here at the university library,
0:14:23 > 0:14:25right up until his death in 1935.
0:14:26 > 0:14:29He was head librarian...
0:14:30 > 0:14:32..and this was his office.
0:14:37 > 0:14:40Larkin often alluded to his adopted city in his poetry.
0:14:40 > 0:14:45In his 1961 poem Here, he describes a place
0:14:45 > 0:14:47"Where only salesman and relations come
0:14:47 > 0:14:49"Within a terminate and fishy-smelling
0:14:49 > 0:14:53"Pastoral of ships up streets, the slave museum
0:14:53 > 0:14:57"Tattoo shops, consulates, grim head-scarfed wives..."
0:14:57 > 0:14:59Charming(!)
0:14:59 > 0:15:02Larkin certainly had a way with words -
0:15:02 > 0:15:05and librarians too, by all accounts -
0:15:05 > 0:15:07but as a city, we owe him a lot.
0:15:07 > 0:15:11He's helped put Hull on the map and secure City of Culture status.
0:15:11 > 0:15:13I wonder what Larkin would have thought of
0:15:13 > 0:15:15a year-long arts festival.
0:15:15 > 0:15:18I think he probably would have hated it.
0:15:18 > 0:15:21"Everyone's a flipping poet now."
0:15:22 > 0:15:26Larkin is something of an establishment figure,
0:15:26 > 0:15:28but even when he was alive,
0:15:28 > 0:15:31Hull had a thriving artistic subculture.
0:15:34 > 0:15:37This bohemian aspect of the city is being celebrated
0:15:37 > 0:15:39in a new contemporary art space,
0:15:39 > 0:15:42the Humber Street Gallery, down by the docks.
0:15:44 > 0:15:47Here, the builders have been in a race against the clock
0:15:47 > 0:15:50to get the gallery ready for opening night.
0:15:50 > 0:15:53The arts collective Coum Transmissions
0:15:53 > 0:15:57is the subject of its very first exhibition.
0:15:57 > 0:16:00The group emerged out of the countercultural scene
0:16:00 > 0:16:05in the late 1960s in the city and went on to shock the arts world.
0:16:05 > 0:16:07They were even described as
0:16:07 > 0:16:09"the wreckers of Western civilisation".
0:16:09 > 0:16:11Now, that's cool.
0:16:13 > 0:16:17It was Coum's 1976 exhibition at the ICA called Prostitution
0:16:17 > 0:16:19that earned them that label
0:16:19 > 0:16:21and a place in the history books.
0:16:21 > 0:16:25At the same time, Coum members were also making history as
0:16:25 > 0:16:29pioneers of industrial music with their band Throbbing Gristle.
0:16:33 > 0:16:36But it all started in Hull.
0:16:36 > 0:16:39Now, 50 years on, one of the original Coum members,
0:16:39 > 0:16:42Cosey Fanni Tutti, has returned to curate an exhibition
0:16:42 > 0:16:44celebrating the group's work,
0:16:44 > 0:16:47which draws on her own personal archive.
0:16:48 > 0:16:51That's inside of Prince Street.
0:16:51 > 0:16:53Spydeee's room.
0:16:55 > 0:16:58It was just really joyous cos we were always having such fun.
0:17:00 > 0:17:02Coum was formed in 1969
0:17:02 > 0:17:06by an artist and musician called Genesis P Orridge
0:17:06 > 0:17:08and Cosey joined soon after.
0:17:09 > 0:17:12Their early musical work was rather challenging.
0:17:14 > 0:17:18The instruments we used early on were like...
0:17:18 > 0:17:20bongos, talking drums,
0:17:20 > 0:17:22Jew's harp, mouth organ,
0:17:22 > 0:17:26any kind of small toy, even, that would make a noise.
0:17:26 > 0:17:31So it was, at the beginning, kind of anti-music, if you like,
0:17:31 > 0:17:32or no structure as such.
0:17:32 > 0:17:34It was just fun.
0:17:35 > 0:17:40It was quite a cacophony, to be honest.
0:17:40 > 0:17:44It was just a way of freeing people up to express themselves.
0:17:44 > 0:17:47# On-screen red-haired, green-eyed boy... #
0:17:47 > 0:17:50Coum's work was often the very epitome of bizarre
0:17:50 > 0:17:54and a lot of it performed out on the local streets,
0:17:54 > 0:17:57as this never-seen-before footage from 1972 shows.
0:17:58 > 0:18:00We'd sort of do interventions, if you like,
0:18:00 > 0:18:04with...with the shoppers, as they went about their business,
0:18:04 > 0:18:08in very, very bright gold, copper, silver, Day-Glo outfits,
0:18:08 > 0:18:11so they couldn't miss us, really.
0:18:11 > 0:18:15Bizarre little scenarios, quite surreal, Dada-based.
0:18:17 > 0:18:19It's hard to believe now,
0:18:19 > 0:18:22cos so much like that goes on every day in the streets,
0:18:22 > 0:18:25but they'd never seen anything like it before.
0:18:27 > 0:18:29The children enjoyed it, some didn't,
0:18:29 > 0:18:32so we just..."Well, see you, then." You know?
0:18:32 > 0:18:34If it's not your cup of tea, then that's fine.
0:18:34 > 0:18:38But, yeah, it was confrontational in terms of...
0:18:38 > 0:18:40Not us being confrontational,
0:18:40 > 0:18:42but just the situation of us being there,
0:18:42 > 0:18:45and it being so unusual and not what...
0:18:45 > 0:18:47And unexpected,
0:18:47 > 0:18:50in their daily shopping, weekend shopping.
0:18:50 > 0:18:53The group would become infamous in Hull
0:18:53 > 0:18:56for a piece of conceptual art known as the Wagon Train.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59It was my usual pram for popping to the laundrette,
0:18:59 > 0:19:01something as mundane as that, you know,
0:19:01 > 0:19:04and then gradually it got decorated up
0:19:04 > 0:19:08and became a wagon train with a...like, a hoot...hood on it,
0:19:08 > 0:19:10which was, like, fluorescent pink polythene,
0:19:10 > 0:19:12and it was sprayed gold
0:19:12 > 0:19:15and had gold frying pans and all kinds of objects hanging from it.
0:19:17 > 0:19:18The Wagon Train ended up being
0:19:18 > 0:19:21an exhibit in the Ferens Art Gallery,
0:19:21 > 0:19:22which was an ironic statement for us,
0:19:22 > 0:19:25because we were so anti-establishment art
0:19:25 > 0:19:26and art institutions,
0:19:26 > 0:19:28but that appealed to us.
0:19:28 > 0:19:30That is what Coum was all about -
0:19:30 > 0:19:34infiltrating, contradicting, doing the unexpected.
0:19:37 > 0:19:40Hull people are very...
0:19:40 > 0:19:45They have a...an attitude to life which I really like,
0:19:45 > 0:19:48cos I'm from Hull, you know.
0:19:48 > 0:19:50And it is confrontational,
0:19:50 > 0:19:54and it's almost like a self-preservation attitude,
0:19:54 > 0:19:57you know, and...
0:19:57 > 0:20:01That confrontational approach to life is really, I think,
0:20:01 > 0:20:03what we built our work on.
0:20:05 > 0:20:08When it comes to the locals, I think plenty of people
0:20:08 > 0:20:11are sceptical about a year-long arts festival
0:20:11 > 0:20:16and what difference it will make to the city and their lives.
0:20:16 > 0:20:19When I found out that Hull had won the Culture bid
0:20:19 > 0:20:20to be City of Culture,
0:20:20 > 0:20:24I suppose my only real concern was
0:20:24 > 0:20:26would it be - and I hate to say this -
0:20:26 > 0:20:28a middle-class arts festival,
0:20:28 > 0:20:34you know, for people who can access the arts anyway, and do so,
0:20:34 > 0:20:37or would it be an arts festival for everyone?
0:20:47 > 0:20:49This is Thornton Estate,
0:20:49 > 0:20:53home to 4,500 people,
0:20:53 > 0:20:56and one of the less affluent areas of Hull.
0:21:00 > 0:21:01For the City of Culture,
0:21:01 > 0:21:04preparations are underway in the local community office
0:21:04 > 0:21:08for a large-scale art installation involving residents
0:21:08 > 0:21:12that will see coloured filters applied to their communal lights.
0:21:14 > 0:21:18It was the idea of Italian artist Silvio Palladino,
0:21:18 > 0:21:20who previously spent a year on the estate
0:21:20 > 0:21:22as an artist in residence.
0:21:24 > 0:21:27While I was here, I got to know a lot of the residents -
0:21:27 > 0:21:29I mean, I was one of them.
0:21:29 > 0:21:33But I also got to talk to people living outside the estate.
0:21:33 > 0:21:36And there is a lot of stigma attached to this estate,
0:21:36 > 0:21:40probably going back to how it was 20, 30 years ago.
0:21:40 > 0:21:44So I wanted to challenge this and I wanted to tell other people,
0:21:44 > 0:21:47"Come here, see who lives here, see...
0:21:48 > 0:21:51"Learn about the stories of people who live here."
0:21:54 > 0:21:57Studying and researching about Hull history
0:21:57 > 0:21:59and the history about the area,
0:21:59 > 0:22:02so I came across the international maritime communications system,
0:22:02 > 0:22:06which is a flag system that ships use to communicate with each other.
0:22:06 > 0:22:09And I found out that a very simple flag, yellow and blue,
0:22:09 > 0:22:11means "I wish to communicate with you".
0:22:11 > 0:22:15And I guess that was a good kind of starting point.
0:22:15 > 0:22:17Erm...
0:22:17 > 0:22:19So this working with the lights and with the colours
0:22:19 > 0:22:22and the title I Wish To Communicate With You
0:22:22 > 0:22:24means "Come here, let's start a conversation."
0:22:24 > 0:22:28I feel under the cosh here, you two, you're going so fast.
0:22:33 > 0:22:36This is the production line of our filters
0:22:36 > 0:22:41that go into the communal lighting, so it's very hi tech - not.
0:22:42 > 0:22:44LAUGHTER
0:22:44 > 0:22:48Sharon Darley has been a community worker on the estate for ten years.
0:22:49 > 0:22:54We're using all the colours of the rainbow
0:22:54 > 0:22:58and people get to choose their colours
0:22:58 > 0:23:00that we install in the lighting outside their flats.
0:23:00 > 0:23:04Over the last few weeks, Sharon and her team have been busy
0:23:04 > 0:23:08installing the filters to three of the blocks.
0:23:08 > 0:23:09Hiya, there.
0:23:09 > 0:23:12- Sorry to disturb, but we're just fitting the filters now.- Yeah.
0:23:12 > 0:23:15So if that's all right, it'll only take us a few minutes.
0:23:15 > 0:23:17Yeah, that's fine.
0:23:17 > 0:23:19- And you asked for purple. - Yes, please.
0:23:19 > 0:23:20Purple is what you get.
0:23:24 > 0:23:27Ruth Langdon lives here with her family,
0:23:27 > 0:23:29including 11-year-old daughter Rosa.
0:23:29 > 0:23:32Since the lights and starting doing this thing,
0:23:32 > 0:23:34people are talking to each other a little bit more,
0:23:34 > 0:23:37so it's brought a little bit of community.
0:23:37 > 0:23:39It's nice.
0:23:39 > 0:23:42It's not every day that you're the City of Culture
0:23:42 > 0:23:44and you're going to be asked to be involved in it,
0:23:44 > 0:23:46so we thought it was a really nice thing.
0:23:46 > 0:23:48We let the children pick what colour they wanted,
0:23:48 > 0:23:49so it's nice, really.
0:23:49 > 0:23:53I'm really proud to be part of it.
0:23:53 > 0:23:58We fitted one of these blocks in 58 minutes the other day,
0:23:58 > 0:23:59so we're getting good at it now.
0:23:59 > 0:24:01We're getting good at it.
0:24:18 > 0:24:21It feels absolutely amazing.
0:24:21 > 0:24:26It's one of the best things I've had the privilege of being involved in.
0:24:26 > 0:24:28This is just the first.
0:24:28 > 0:24:33We will put as many lights out as possible over the next few months
0:24:33 > 0:24:35and it just really exciting.
0:24:39 > 0:24:43Erm, I think it looks really nice when I go to school and when
0:24:43 > 0:24:44I come back, the colour of it.
0:24:47 > 0:24:50This is one of 60 community-led art projects
0:24:50 > 0:24:53that forms part of the year-long programme
0:24:53 > 0:24:56run by director of the City of Culture Martin Green.
0:24:58 > 0:25:00I Wish To Communicate With You
0:25:00 > 0:25:03is the perfect example of what it's all about.
0:25:04 > 0:25:09This is indeed where art brings us together.
0:25:09 > 0:25:10We live in uncertain times,
0:25:10 > 0:25:13where too many people seek to divide us.
0:25:13 > 0:25:18And in this beautiful project, everything comes together, you know,
0:25:18 > 0:25:20and I love it.
0:25:20 > 0:25:22It just...it took my breath away.
0:25:24 > 0:25:29A 365-day arts programme is a terror and a joy.
0:25:29 > 0:25:33I think the basic thing that I tried to do with the team
0:25:33 > 0:25:38was make sure that, in every place, somewhere,
0:25:38 > 0:25:40the fabric of the city, or the story,
0:25:40 > 0:25:41or the voice of the city
0:25:41 > 0:25:43was contained in what we were programming.
0:25:46 > 0:25:49To tell the story of a city, you have to deal with who we were,
0:25:49 > 0:25:53who we are, but importantly, who we wish to be.
0:25:53 > 0:25:55And so you will see, growing through the year,
0:25:55 > 0:25:57much more of a focus forward.
0:25:57 > 0:25:59Having celebrated the stories of the past,
0:25:59 > 0:26:02what does that actually mean for this city
0:26:02 > 0:26:04and its inhabitants for the future?
0:26:04 > 0:26:07And what's going on is a city refinding its pride,
0:26:07 > 0:26:10and proud cities are confident cities
0:26:10 > 0:26:13and confident cities can do anything they like.
0:26:17 > 0:26:19My final stop is our city square,
0:26:19 > 0:26:23where a vast new art installation nods to our city's future.
0:26:26 > 0:26:28This is a blade from a wind turbine made in
0:26:28 > 0:26:30a newly opened factory in Hull.
0:26:32 > 0:26:3575 metres long and weighing 25 tonnes,
0:26:35 > 0:26:38it's a tribute to local craftsmanship
0:26:38 > 0:26:41and claimed to be the largest single cast product in the world.
0:26:43 > 0:26:47Although the artwork is certainly dividing opinion...
0:26:47 > 0:26:49Look at that monstrosity there.
0:26:49 > 0:26:51- I know. It's a butter knife. - Built in Hull.
0:26:51 > 0:26:53SHE LAUGHS
0:26:53 > 0:26:57It makes an impact, 100%. I just hope it don't fall down.
0:26:57 > 0:26:59Well, I'm not sure whether it's art or not,
0:26:59 > 0:27:01but it is bringing people in.
0:27:01 > 0:27:04I've never seen the city centre look so busy in so many years,
0:27:04 > 0:27:07so I think it's really done a lot for us.
0:27:07 > 0:27:09It's unusual, isn't it?
0:27:09 > 0:27:13Why would you want to come and see one-third of a wind turbine blade?
0:27:13 > 0:27:15That's all it is.
0:27:15 > 0:27:19I love it. I think it looks brilliant. Work of art.
0:27:19 > 0:27:21I'd call it more of a display than an artwork...
0:27:21 > 0:27:23- But that's just me.- And I love it.
0:27:24 > 0:27:28With more than ten months of brilliant events yet to come,
0:27:28 > 0:27:32I've only had a small taste of what the City of Culture has to offer...
0:27:34 > 0:27:36..but I'm excited by what I've seen.
0:27:38 > 0:27:42There's a buzz in the city again and it's really emotional to see.
0:27:42 > 0:27:47Finally, we can silence the critics and stop putting ourselves down.
0:27:47 > 0:27:49This year, we're the City of Culture.
0:27:49 > 0:27:51Next year, who knows?
0:27:51 > 0:27:54I'm sure we'll be the capital of the north.
0:27:56 > 0:27:59I'll leave you with a love poem to Hull,
0:27:59 > 0:28:00created for the City of Culture,
0:28:00 > 0:28:03written by local poet Shane Rhodes.
0:28:08 > 0:28:12Peel back the writer and you have a filleter
0:28:12 > 0:28:16Peel back the filleter and you have a trawlerman
0:28:16 > 0:28:21Peel back the trawlerman and you have a trawlerman's dad
0:28:21 > 0:28:27Peel back the trawlerman's dad and you have a stowaway.