UK’s regions vital to creative industries
The ongoing conversation about the creative industries’ geographical spread continued apace this week as the UK minister for culture emphasised the importance of organisations and support structures outside London.
Ed Vaizey was speaking at Creative England’s Catalyse conference in central London and, as reported by Screen Daily, was keen to highlight the fact that 70% of the UK’s creative industries are now well-established outside the capital.
Certainly in terms of high-end TV drama production, the varied locations on offer around the UK have themselves played an important role as much more than just a backdrop for many shows. This in turn offers up long-term benefits such as screen tourism, as fans seek out settings for titles such as Broadchurch, Poldark and Beowulf.
At the gathering for business leaders, Vaizey cited the fiscal impact made by the creative industries to the UK economy: the latest figures released in the autumn showed an annual contribution of £7.5bn overall.
Although there have been some high-profile closures of studios within London and the south east, demand outside the capital continues to grow, with particular pressure on Scotland to invest in a purpose-built facility.
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