Shakespeare North
Click
here
to view a Daily Telegraph feature article
on Prescot's bid to celebrate its
cultural history
with a working Elizabethan theatre and arts complex
Official
Shakespeare North
website here
November 2007
Update
Earlier this month
it was announced that Shakespeare North had not been
chosen as one of the three recipients of Big Lottery
funding. Shakespeare North and Knowsley Council will
continue to pursue funding to commemorate Prescot's
Shakespearean heritage.
Shakespeare North project
through to final shortlist
(October 2007 press release)
Knowsley Council and Shakespeare North Trust have today
had confirmation from the Big Lottery Fund that its
Living Landmarks bid is still in the running for £25m to
create a new theatre, education, heritage and community
arts complex in Prescot. .
It brings the dream of the £38.5m community and visitor
attraction for Knowsley a step closer.
Knowsley Council,
Shakespeare North Trust and the Friends of Shakespeare
North at The Cockpit are now waiting to hear if they are
one of the projects to be awarded the grant in November.
Cllr Ron Round, leader
of Knowsley Council, said: “This is absolutely wonderful
news and is an exciting step forward towards making our
dream to transform the area come true.
“If we were to get this
lottery funding, it would mean much more than ‘just’ a
new theatre for the region. It would be a
multi-functional arts facility for both local people and
visitors from overseas. It will include spaces for
performance, arts, education and training and would
offer something for everyone of all ages and many
interests. On top of that, it would commemorate the
area’s rich heritage and links with Shakespeare. I also
believe it would act as a catalyst to regenerate the
area – not just Prescot but the whole borough, and the
knock-on effect for the Merseyside and North West region
from the additional tourism could be immense.
“At this stage I’d like
to thank everyone who has given their support to the
Knowsley bid so enthusiastically. Their input has helped
enormously in getting us this far. The Big Lottery Fund
committee need to see that there is a genuine hunger for
a project on this scale in this area, and our local
people have left them in no doubt that there is. More
than 1,300 people have signed up to become Friends of
Shakespeare North already.”
“We will now be keeping
our fingers tightly crossed and hoping for more positive
news from the Big Lottery Fund in November.”
Shakespeare North
Executive Director David Thacker said: “This is a
fantastic achievement for all those working in the
project. We have come this far because of the
inspirational vision to build on our heritage to
transform the quality of life for local people, because
of the powerful partnership between Knowsley Council and
The Shakespeare North Trust and, crucially, because of
the strength of support from the local community.
“With the help of local
people we can go all the way. Everyone can play their
part by becoming a Friend of Shakespeare North to
demonstrate to the Big Lottery Fund that the momentum is
with us.
Students on top of
the world after Shakespeare bid
(June 2007)
Twenty-five
Knowsley School pupils were on top of the world after they’d
delivered Shakespeare North and Knowsley Council’s
application for £25m to create an international theatre and
community arts/education complex,
The Cockpit, in Prescot, Knowsley, Merseyside, to
commemorate the first purpose-built indoor theatre in
Britain (built in Prescot in the 1590’s) and William
Shakespeare’s largely unrecognised association with Knowsley
and the north of England.
They met with Shakespeare North Executive Director, David
Thacker, and Architect Nick Helm and handed the precious bid
document over to them. David Thacker delivered it to Big
Lottery on their behalf and on behalf of all future
generations of Knowsley children.
After
handing over the impressive bid document the children
enjoyed a day by the Thames where William Shakespeare would
have walked 400 years ago.
First they saw the whole of London from the London Eye. Then
they walked along the River to Shakespeare’s Globe where the
Globe Education Department had arranged a tour of the Globe
and a question and answer session with the students.
David Thacker said today: "The young people were a credit to
Knowsley Schools. I had a wonderful day with them; they were
great fun to be with and extremely appreciative. We wanted
them to bring the bid document to London to represent the
people of Knowsley as a symbol of Knowsley’s aspirations for
a better future. They were perfect ambassadors and Knowsley
can be very proud of its young people."
Klare Murray, Community Arts Manager at Halewood Performing
Arts College helped David Thacker organise the trip. Klare
said today: "The young people were extremely excited to be
part of this adventure, they are very passionate and hope
that the lottery bid is successful so they can continue
developing their Shakespeare work. They have now decided
they want to stage their own version of Macbeth."
David Lane, one of the students, said today: "London was
great, the bid was massive, the biggest thing I’ve ever
seen. I hope we get the new Theatre it will be boss."
Shakespeare North at The Cockpit
Shakespeare North at The Cockpit is one of 23 national
projects to be shortlisted from over a hundred in the Big
Lottery’s Living Landmarks Scheme.
If the bid is successful, this iconic building, The Cockpit,
will contain at its heart an authentic recreation of Inigo
Jones's renowned theatre, the Cockpit-in-Court, built in
1629.
The Cockpit will act as a vital hub for community life, with
spaces not just for theatre but for education and all
community arts, as well as family-friendly facilities
including a café and cinema.
If successful, this exciting project will become a catalyst
for the regeneration of Prescot, Knowsley and the region,
attracting visitors from the UK and internationally,
stimulating the economy and providing a focus for community
activities in the area. Its success depends on winning the
£25 million bid from the Big Lottery’s Living Landmarks
Scheme.
A message of support for the students came from Knowsley
South MP Edward O’Hara, said: "I am 100% behind this
exciting project which will achieve a number of things: it
will recall what a vibrant and important town Prescot was in
Tudor times, as attested by the fact that the first purpose
built indoor theatre was built there; it will broaden
people's understanding of Shakespeare's career and make an
important addition to the "Shakespeare trail"; and it will
do so by providing a first class cultural facility at the
centre of community life in Prescot - just as the Playhouse
was in the 1590's."
Curtain up on Shakespeare bid
(March 2007)
The final act has begun for
a bid to secure a stunning £27 million community and visitor
attraction for the North West.
Shakespeare North aims to
create a world-class building to commemorate Prescot’s unique identity,
Elizabethan history and
connection with William Shakespeare.
If
the bid is successful, this iconic building, The Cockpit,
will contain at its heart a historically authentic
recreation of Inigo Jones’ renowned theatre, the Cockpit in
Court, built in 1629.
The Cockpit will act as a
vital hub for community life, creating spaces not just for
performance but education and training, as well as family
friendly facilities including a café and cinema.
This exciting project could
potentially become a catalyst for the regeneration of
Prescot, Knowsley and the region, attracting visitors from
the UK and internationally, stimulating the economy and
providing a focus for community activities in the area. Its
success depends on winning a £20 million bid from the Big
Lottery’s Living Landmarks Scheme.
Prescot was home to the
very first indoor playhouse in the country, which it is very
likely that Shakespeare himself visited, given his close
connections with the Stanley family, the Earls of Derby, who
have lived at Knowsley Hall since 1385.
In a major coup for the
project, award-winning theatre and TV director David Thacker
has been appointed as Executive Director of Shakespeare
North Trust to spearhead the final phase of the bid, which
will be submitted in May. David has directed 16 of
Shakespeare’s plays for the Royal Shakespeare Company, the
Young Vic and the Duke’s Playhouse, Lancaster.
Speaking at a meeting of
leading business and theatre consultants in which Helm
Architects and David Thacker introduced the project, David
Thacker said:
“Shakespeare North at the
Cockpit is one of the most exciting and important projects
with which I’ve ever been associated. I’m deeply honoured to
have been appointed as Executive Director to lead the
process of trying to secure £27m from Big Lottery and other
partners. Creating Shakespeare North at The Cockpit in
Prescot, close to the site of the original Playhouse, would
celebrate Knowsley’s role in the development of British
theatre and of Shakespeare’s work in particular, and would
provide a massive boost to the continuing regeneration of
Knowsley. This is an opportunity that must not be missed. We
owe it to Shakespeare, to our children and to our children’s
children.”
Cllr Graham Morgan,
Knowsley Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration and
Neighbourhoods, said: “The Shakespeare North project
represents an extremely exciting opportunity, not only for
Prescot and Knowsley, but for the North West region as a
whole.
“This would be a very
important cultural centre, attracting visitors from this
country and abroad, and locally it would provide employment,
encourage economic growth and act as a catalyst for
regeneration.
“We are fully supporting
this bid to bring this development to our borough.”
The design brief for
Shakespeare North has been created following consultation
with the local community, including public meetings,
consultation with schools, local young people and community
groups. David Thacker explains: “We face a complex
challenge with Shakespeare North, to create somewhere that
people will get on a plane to visit, that local people will
also see as the heart of their community. I’m confident
that we can find that balance.”
The hard work to bring
Shakespeare North to fruition has also taken a further step
forward with the formation of the Shakespeare North Trust, a
body which brings together all of the key partners. The
Shakespeare North Trust will submit the final bid, and, if
successful, oversee the creation of this iconic community
and visitor attraction.
