Is London too rich to be interesting?

Intelligence Squared

Arts, News, Society & Culture, News Commentary

4.2 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 31 August 2017

⏱️ 61 minutes

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Summary

It used to be so easy. You left university, came to London and got yourself a flatshare in one of the cheaper areas: Notting Hill, Maida Vale or Highgate. Living was cheap and if it took you a while to find out what you really wanted to do with your life you could drift about a bit and get by. But now thanks to vast City bonuses and the influx of foreign billionaires, London house prices have soared beyond the reach of all but the seriously rich. Parts of Notting Hill and Kensington have become ‘buy to leave’ ghost towns, the houses boarded up and showing no signs of life. Shoreditch and Hackney, not long ago the hip new outposts for musicians and artists, are now home to well-paid professionals. And London is the worse for it. That’s the argument of those who worry that London is becoming too rich to be interesting. But is there any evidence that the city is growing bland? Quite the reverse. On any evening almost wherever you go London’s streets are abuzz with life. People here crave a communal experience and the city provides it with its 600 parks, thousands of pubs and dynamic cultural scene. There’s a dynamic between wealth and creativity that keeps London exciting. If you prefer greater egalitarianism and more cycle lanes, there’s always Stockholm. Joining us to discuss the question "Is London too rich to be interesting?" were rapper and poet Akala, journalist Tanya Gold, artist Gavin Turk, and author and journalist Simon Jenkins. The event was chaired by Kieran Long, senior curator of contemporary architecture, design and digital at the V&A. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/intelligencesquared. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to the VNA. It's so great to see this room full and I'm looking forward to hearing from lots of you later on on this question.
0:10.0	I'll introduce the speakers one at a time as I asked them the question but I thought just by word of introduction I sort of reflect upon what makes a city interesting
0:19.3	It seems to me that most cities that are known for being rich or known for being about money are sort of by definition
0:25.0	not interesting or at least they always were. Think of Monaco or Geneva or Zurich or Luxembourg
0:31.2	and they don't really try to be interesting, they just try to be good safe ports in a storm for money.
0:36.0	And those that are interesting perhaps, especially recently,
0:40.0	you think of Berlin or Barcelona or Detroit.
0:44.0	They're definitely not rich and they don't try to be.
0:47.0	And it was somehow thrilling when in 2004 Berlin's mayor, Klaus Voverite said Berlin is poor but sexy and celebrated that quality in his city
0:55.7	and I'm interested to wonder whether Mayor Boris Johnson would would celebrate that quality
1:00.7	if indeed we had it. This great institution is perhaps one of the places
1:06.1	that makes London interesting. London is a capital of culture, we have galleries and museums, and they number amongst the most popular
1:13.8	tourist attractions in the world. London is the most popular tourist destination in the world
1:18.6	according to the evening standard, and we have listed buildings and universities and shopping and pubs and we have
1:25.3	carnival and the marathon and festivals and moments of public rejoicing.
1:29.8	So attractive is London as a destination that in 2003 we started a congestion charge and charged people to get in to the city arguably becoming the first city ever to charge for entry.
1:41.0	But there's no doubt that London is rich. The city has never looked swisher.
1:46.0	One line always confirms this for me is that there is Yorkstone on Old Street,
1:51.0	who would have ever thought that a few years ago? But perhaps what we mean when
1:55.9	we say London is rich is that the rich light to be here. 4,2204 ultra high net worth individuals live in this city, more than any other city in the world,
2:06.0	and it's by far the most unequal region of the UK.
2:11.0	By way of a final example of that, down the street from here and perhaps if you're wondering that way later you might have a look at it
	...

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