The Bold Street Project Blog; The Street, The Art, The Research, The exhibition, The Community.
Dawn French takes a trip to Liverpool circa 1985 to present an episode of SWANK for Channel 4. SWANK offers a suave view of the world, from pavement art, to experimental fashions, avant guard music and culture, all filmed in Liverpool. SWANK, Produced for Channel 4 by Veronyka Bodnarec is now available on Google Video.
All female artists’ group Foreign Investment were invited by Liverpool Culture Company and Alan Dunn to produce a new piece of work that built on the strengths of Liverpool City Centre. Over two days in July 2006 they presented “Tuning-in Op.3″ featuring buskers serenading workers on the site of the Grosvenor, Hanover Street and Bluecoat developments, flyposted graphics, an exhibition at PolishedT and the same buskers, including Bold Street regulars Barry and Phil, touring Bold Street and the city centre on a horse-drawn cart, playing to static audiences rather than the other way around.
You can watch the film on Google Video, and also as one of our Bold Street Podcast episodes. For documentation, see: http://www.alandunn67.co.uk/diversions/
If you haven’t heard of the Mardi Gras on Bold Street then you probably aren’t into music and didn’t live in Liverpool in the late eighties or nineties. The Mardi Gras is synonymous with the dance and club scene and was a Bold Street, and Liverpool favorite. Club Promoters Jason and Mark Jones managed the Mardi in its heyday, and recently talked to Laura Yates about the club, its history and some of their favorite nights. Laura interviews Jason and Mark in a series of episodes covering everything from the history of the club to the night the Stone Roses played. You can watch all of the episodes on Google Video. A selection has also been added to the Bold Street Video Podcast. Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes.
In May we spoke to local City Council Community Historian Steve Binns. Steve agreed to a filmed interview and talked about Bold Street in the 1800’s. He gave a real insight into the atmosphere at the time and the significant changes that have occurred to the street over the decades.
Also, prior to our conversation we had very little detail about Jonas Bold (whom the street was named after), and it was Steve himself who confirmed that Jonas was in fact a prominent slave trader. Click here to watch the interview.
An interview with Katie Lips about The Bold Street Project, Metro, Wednesday 27 June 2007.
Compiling street directories from 1893, 1924, 1929, 1935, 1960 and 2007, we have built up a partial picture of the activity on Bold Street over the past century. Here are some interesting things we gleaned from this search:
In 1893 John H. M’Clelland is described as masseur and electrician. Whether this is an example of a multi-talented individual or a printing error, is one of the many mysteries of the Gore’s Directories. At number 8, Bell & Co. listed as blouse specialists in 1924 are described in the 1929 directory (presumably correctly this time) as house specialists. At number 34a, in 1924, a Madame Nedgma is listed as a “palmiste”, whereas a few years later, in 1929, Madame Nedjma is listed as a “mental scientist”. Whether one should interpret this as a slick piece of rebranding, or a printing error- or perhaps a combination of the two- is open to debate!
Another possible connection which struck us, was the prevalence of tailors named Gould on the street. Leslie Gould, tailor worked from number 122 Bold Street in 1929. In 1935, a Lazarus Gould worked as a costumier in number 76 and in 1960, Joseph Gould was a tailor in number 5.
Courtesy of Liverpool Record Office
Finally, the 1960 directory features an ironic twist, with the number of electrolysis salons outnumbered only by furriers. If anyone has any information about these people, please contact us at boldstreet@fact.co.uk
The sleeve of this Jonas Thomassen & JT Scam CD - on which they cover NiN’s hurt - appears to show Bold Street Bill. Title of the CD is “Bold Street” …. anyone know anything else?
A Film of the Video Positive Festival 1995 is now available online at Google Video. The film, from the successful international Video Art Festival and includes works from the show. This forms part of the ‘Cultural History’ of Bold Street section of our upcoming exhibition, in which, as well as this Video Positive FIlm, we will be showing a range of other films which detail the Cultural History of the street. You can find more information about Video Positive Festival on the LuxOnline website. There is also a book about the Festival available on Amazon.
Received from Paul Simpson a set of images made by Bob Colwell in 1985 of 77 Bold Street during a Channel 4 special on Cafe Berlin. If anyone knows how to contact Bob, please get in touch. Currently seeking footage of any Cafe Berlin gigs by Smiths, New Order, Bunnymen etc.
When researching what’s already out there “on Bold Street on Youtube”, we were pleased to find a selection of Bold Street Events already “youtubed”. There’s the good, the bad and the delightful; this is from Maximo Park cutting the ribbon at the opening of the new HMV on Bold Street recently.
Jegsy Dodd visited us at FACT today and read his poem (and song) “3am on Bold Street”, to the thoughtful tenantspin audience. then joined Laura in conversation on the sofa for an ‘edgy’ chat on the contemporary feel of Bold Street.
