The 19th Mathew Street Festival excels, with a hundred international bands performing on six stages.
A third of a million people attend, making this one of England's most successful cultural events. According to the BBC, "organisers of Liverpool's Mathew Street Festival believe visitor numbers have exceeded last year's record-breaking figure of 320,000."
Ever since Liverpool headed off competition from half a dozen other UK cities to be named European City of Culture in 2008, Merseyside has spruced up its act. Councillor Wendy Simon, cabinet member for culture at Liverpool City Council, said: "It was a great opening day on Sunday with record numbers, which we expect will be repeated on day two. "The Monday is traditionally even better supported and we think that the Liverpool Number One Stage is going to be a big draw" reports the BBC.
Now Liverpudlians are "bidding to England’s first UNESCO City of Music" inform the Mathew Street Festival organisers. They've always been proud of the city of George Stubbs, Arthur Askey, Ken Dodd, Jimmy Tarbuck, Sir Rex Harrison, John Lennon, Sir Paul McCartney, Sir Simon Rattle, Wayne Rooney (do I add him?) and countless other celebrities. As they fight off images of poverty, deprivation and delapidation with enthusiastic rejuvenation, locals would rather stop at home then venture south to London to advance careers. Always something southerners found mysterious.
In 2010 the Daily Mail reported, "council chiefs have been branded 'idiots' after they decided to go ahead with plans to bulldoze the Liverpool street where Beatles' drummer Ringo Starr was born. A humble terraced house at 9 Madryn Street is where Richard Starkey entered the world on July 7, 1940. And for half a decade, it has stood empty as politicians wrangled over its future, along with the rest of the 444 homes in 'The Welsh Streets' in the city's Dingle area. Conservationists, Ringo and ex-deputy prime minister John Prescott were horrified. But, finally, this metropolis of 1.1 million can boast again about non football-related achievements.
In 2010 the Daily Mail reported, "council chiefs have been branded 'idiots' after they decided to go ahead with plans to bulldoze the Liverpool street where Beatles' drummer Ringo Starr was born. A humble terraced house at 9 Madryn Street is where Richard Starkey entered the world on July 7, 1940. And for half a decade, it has stood empty as politicians wrangled over its future, along with the rest of the 444 homes in 'The Welsh Streets' in the city's Dingle area. Conservationists, Ringo and ex-deputy prime minister John Prescott were horrified. But, finally, this metropolis of 1.1 million can boast again about non football-related achievements.
As the festival site states, Liverpool offers a lot, from "museums and galleries to world class shopping and a World Heritage waterfront." And that waterfront is quite stunning.
And a festival to match most for atmosphere and diversity: an upbeat story from the home of the Beatles.
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