Cannes of the North
FORGET Cannes and Hollywood. Bradford has been crowned the world’s first City of Film.
The West Yorkshire curry capital, more famous for bhunas than Baftas, was chosen by a committee of film buffs at the Paris HQ of the United Nations cultural organisation Unesco.
Business leaders hailed the award as a much-needed boost for local tourism.
Movies have been made in Bradford since 1896 – long before Hollywood – and its portfolio includes Billy Liar, The Dresser and Monty Python’s The Meaning Of Life.
Screen writer Simon Beaufoy, who won an Oscar this year for hit movie Slumdog Millionaire, said: “The city has played a crucial role in the story of cinema and helped shape its history.”
Bradford becomes only the third British city – after Edinburgh for literature and Glasgow for music – to receive a Unesco designation as part of its Creative Cities Network.