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Press
Icons – A Portrait of England wants to help the public enjoy and celebrate the country’s cultural treasures more. It is a special project being launched today (9 January), funded by Culture Online, part of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
The idea is that each one of us can nominate our favourite icons – the things we cherish most about life in England. With these icons, the Icons project will piece together a portrait of England. It will be assembled jigsaw-fashion, bit by bit, in an online collection at www.icons.org.uk.
People will also be able to vote on each other’s nominations and submit anecdotes and comments about their chosen icons. To start things off this New Year, Icons is announcing 12 ‘Icons of England’. Then each quarter more icons of England will be announced, after the public have had their say.
The first 12 official ‘Icons of England’ are: Stonehenge, Punch and Judy, the S.S. Empire Windrush, Holbein’s portrait of Henry VIII, a cup of tea, the FA Cup, Alice in Wonderland, the Routemaster double-decker bus, the King James Bible, the Angel of the North, the Spitfire and Jerusalem.
The Icons project should spark a lot of debate about what makes England what it is in the 21st century, particularly as culture and identity are hotly debated topics at the moment. Different communities will learn a lot about each other’s icons, bringing people closer in understanding.
"Who hasn’t ached for a proper cup of tea when they’ve been on an overseas holiday or yearned for their team to pick up the FA Cup at the end of the season?" said Culture Minister, David Lammy MP, who is attending the launch. "The ICONS website helps us to explore how our response to icons has shaped our understanding of personal and national identity."
"Ultimately the hope is that more of us will pass through the doors of the nation’s museums and galleries as we grow in awareness about the fascinating things housed in them," said Jerry Doyle, Managing Director of Icons. "Switching on people - particularly disadvantaged groups - to the joys and benefits of surfing the web is another goal."
Icons is working with the People’s Network, Age Concern, Mencap, the CEED Positive Action programme in Bristol and the Disabled Living Foundation to encourage web use. If funding becomes available, Icons also wants to roll out the whole project in future to Wales, Scotland and possibly to Ireland.
Organisations supporting Icons include the National Trust, the Black Cultural Archives, English Heritage, the Museum of Rugby, the V&A Museum of Childhood, the National Portrait Gallery, the Football Association, the Muslim Council for Great Britain and national and city museums in Bristol, London, Birmingham, Gateshead, Brighton & Hove and Manchester.
The National Trust’s Director of Historic Properties, Sarah Staniforth said: "From Stonehenge to the White Cliffs of Dover, the world-famous gardens at Sissinghurst to the national lawnmower collection, the National Trust cares for many of the country’s most cherished icons. I’m delighted, therefore, that we are contributing to the Icons – A Portrait of England project. I’m really passionate about engaging more people in our cultural heritage and believe the Icons project offers an exciting and fun way to broaden our appeal."
Responding to news that the FA Cup has been chosen as an icon of England, the Football Association’s Chief Executive, Brian Barwick said: "The nomination is a great tribute to what is undoubtedly the world’s greatest club Cup competition and it couldn’t have come at a more appropriate moment, given that this season The FA Cup is being played for the 125th time. The FA Cup has a unique place in English sporting culture and a magic all of its own. It has consistently generated some of the great stories and moments in sport and we are delighted that it has been recognized in this way."
Media Contacts: ICONS Media Office - 01273 821276, 01273 821209, 01273 820560 or 07766757948 (out of hours)
Notes to Editor
1. To arrange interviews or for further information, please email jerryd@icons.org.uk or call the Icons media office on 01273 820560 or 01273 821209
2. Internationally-renowned, Malcolm Garrett is the creative design director on ICONS and ICONS Online is a not-for-profit company set up to develop the ICONS project by Cognitive Applications (www.cogapp.com), an award-winning new media consultancy founded in 1985.
3. A full educational programme will be launched by Icons in the Spring. Details: 01273 821209.
4. Celebrities who have nominated an icon and will be featured in the Me and My Icons section of the new Icons website, include: Floella Benjamin, June Whitfield, Sir Henry Cooper, Eddie Izzard, Jonathan Miller, Amanda Redman, Margaret Drabble, Maureen Lipman, Claire Rayner, Ken Livingstone, Jimmy Hill, Tracy Chevalier, Sir Terence Conran, Janet Suzman, Judy Parfitt, TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber and Frederic Raphael.
5. For the full results of the NOP/GSK ICONS survey being published to coincide with the launch, contact stevew@icons.org.uk (results available January 2006). It includes a national survey among 1000 people on what the general public in England think of icons.
6. Culture Online (www.cultureonline.gov.uk) is an innovative initiative that seeks to increase access to, and participation in, arts and culture. Culture Online brings together cultural organisations with cutting-edge technical providers to create projects that will delight adults and children of all ages and backgrounds.
