Learning the lessons of cultural mega-events

The 2023 Eurovision song contest is expected to draw a global audience of 161m, with an estimated 100,000 extra visitors arriving in the host city of Liverpool this month. 

Given the event’s beloved status and dedicated fanbase, it is perhaps unsurprising that 20 UK cities expressed an interest in staging the musical extravaganza when 2022 winners Ukraine were unable to host due to the Russian invasion. The  Liverpool City Region Combined Authority predicts that Eurovision will bring a substantial economic boost to the area. 

Yet, as Associate Director at the Centre for Cultural Value (the Centre) Franco Bianchini points out, stepping into the glare of the global spotlight can bring costs alongside benefits. 

With a research interest in urban regeneration and having led the evaluation of Hull UK City of Culture 2017, Bianchini has seen the impact of many mega-events. In general, he cautions about the dangers of unrealistic expectations, especially in places suffering from long-term structural deprivation. He also recalls some past Eurovision host cities drawing international criticism for poor organisation.

However, Bianchini points to the well-executed Eurovision 2022 in Turin as evidence of the contest’s ability to strengthen the international reputation of a city as a destination for cultural tourism. He also notes its value to the local community: “It was one of the first times that there was something organised in a public park in the city after Covid. Following a time of crisis, it provided hope and connection, especially for young people.”

Staging in the round

As the current Eurovision organiser, Culture Liverpool is keenly aware of the importance of adopting a holistic approach, with an eye on both international and local audiences. The team have therefore dedicated energy and resource to creating a wraparound EuroFestival programme, in addition to producing a world-class contest. 

Billed as the ‘pre-party to end all pre-parties’, the festival involves 24 brand new cultural commissions, 19 of which are collaborations between UK and Ukrainian artists, plus community and education outreach work. Claire McColgan, Director of Culture Liverpool, says, “No other Eurovision host city has ever curated a creative programme of such scale and scope, paying homage to the culture and heritage of both Liverpool and Ukraine in the most unforgettable way.”

McColgan traces Liverpool’s ambitious approach back to their experience of managing Liverpool 2008 European Capital of Culture. “We’ve carried the legacy of that major event,” she says. “The intelligence and the ability live within this team. It allowed us to hit the ground running.”

Ongoing legacy building

McColgan thinks Liverpool is particularly well placed to deliver Eurovision due to the structure adopted by local government during its time as Capital of Culture. “Culture Liverpool is embedded within the city council,” she says. “When you’ve got to do something as quick as Eurovision, you need a spiderlike organisation that can get into everywhere and make things happen really quickly. And we’ve got that in Liverpool, but it’s unusual.”

She adds, “It’s also a reflection on all political administrations since 2008. They’ve invested in this joined-up approach, and they’ve invested in the power of major events as well.”

Claire McColgan, Director of Culture Liverpool. Photo: Cultural Liverpool

Franco Bianchini also suggests that an often unseen legacy of large-scale cultural interventions is their capacity to open new dialogues and ways of working. Reflecting on Cities of Culture, he says: “In many cases, it has been the only time when a coalition of different stakeholders, including the private sector and city council, put culture at the centre of their strategy.”

Having seen the positive impact of Liverpool 2008 on developing Liverpool’s tourism sector, McColgan is conscious of the potential economic legacy of Eurovision. A major research project between Liverpool City Council, the British Council and partner academic institutions will also investigate the impact of the contest in terms of city branding and soft power, especially at a time of conflict. However, besides developing Liverpool and the UK’s international influence, McColgan knows how cultural events can develop a local community’s pride in place. “You can’t underestimate the power of living in Liverpool and seeing your city across all media in a really positive light.” 

“In smaller cities, you can sometimes become one narrative,” she says. “I think what a mega event does is give a city a chance to tell the full story.”

Passing the baton

So, what lessons can be learnt from Liverpool’s experience? And what of other large cultural programmes such as Hull 2017, Coventry 2021 and now LEEDS 2023 as well as international mega-events? 

Bianchini argues that developing a robust legacy strategy with strong governance is key to creating lasting change from Cities of Culture in particular. He believes it is essential to reflect on successes as well as mistakes and suggests that other places will be able to learn from the probe into Coventry City of Culture Trust’s financial management.

Beatriz Garcia, Associate Director at the Centre, also has a background in researching and evaluating large-scale events, including Liverpool 2008. She highlights the multifaceted nature of measuring success. 

“The key is to make sure you are capturing the different dimensions of impact,” she says. “You don’t look at effects only through an economic angle, a social goal, or cultural or environmental angles. You need to look at all of them simultaneously.”

Garcia makes a case for being thorough and unflinching when setting and evaluating objectives, and as part of our Making Data Work project has developed a multidimensional evaluation framework alongside Jonothan Neelands at the University of Warwick. 

“We mustn’t overinflate or over-promise,” she says, “But at the same time, it’s important not to undervalue other longer-term impacts.” She includes the knowledge and confidence gained from managing complex cultural programmes among these less tangible impacts.

“Liverpool is now much more capable of arguing its assets and presenting these in a very convincing manner in a very competitive environment,” she says. 

At the Centre, we are particularly interested in how rigorous research and evaluation can help inform cultural practice and policy and, as part of our emerging plans, we are keen to find practical ways to share best practices, evaluation and research between events and places. 

We are therefore exploring the potential for a national observatory for cultural data. As Garcia says, “The expertise and data are there. It’s just that there has never been a commitment to having a repository of knowledge, and there is no sufficient curation of this information.”

We believe, by making this information accessible and drawing out common themes and insights, we can support policymakers and practitioners when making decisions about future large-scale cultural programmes, such as Bradford 2025. After all, it would be a mistake to let lessons learnt across 15 years in Liverpool – and other mega-event host cities – go unheard. 

Jenny Elliott is Communications Manager for the Centre for Cultural Value.
 www.culturalvalue.org.uk
 @valuingculture | @thelitteadven

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This article, sponsored and contributed by the Centre for Cultural Value, is part of a series supporting an evidence-based approach to examining the impacts of arts, culture and heritage on people and society.