10 June 2009

Winning ideas announced for world’s first user-generated event

On Saturday 20th June the world’s first user-generated event will take place in Ancoats, east Manchester where people are invited to come along and take part in a series of flash-mob style activities. 

Following a four-week flurry of web activity that attracted 103 ideas and 1,166 people counting themselves in, the winning ideas and the confirmed line up can be announced.

People can join Inspiral Carpets and XFM’s Clint Boon in a sing-along of his favourite Manchester classics from his brand new boon army mini, compete in a space hopper race, become an author of a book, play musical statues, set off an Alka Seltzer rocket, break a world record with the longest conga line, dance at a silent disco or help the European Architecture Students Assembly build a model city out of cardboard.  

The event called Cutting Room Experiment, which will start at 12 noon and finish at 10pm. The afternoon’s activities will also include the unveiling of art work by artist Dan Dubowitz at 3pm plus some surprises on the day.

The event organisers are also appealing for men called Eric to come down at 6pm for the largest gathering of people with that name to celebrate Ken Loach’s new film, Looking for Eric, some of which was filmed in Ancoats.

The event will take place in a new outdoor public space called Cutting Room Square next to St Peter’s Church and will be funded by regeneration bodies, the NWDA and New East Manchester, the public sector organisations behind the area’s transformation over the past 10 years. The NWDA has invested £72m into Ancoats and funded Cutting Room Square as part of this investment.

The name of this newly created square, just off Great Ancoats Street and next to St Peter’s Church, comes from the rich heritage of the textile industry in this district in the late 18th and 19th century. This outdoor space was where large swathes of material were cut out.

Cutting Room Experiment is being held to celebrate the completion of the new square and to mark the landmark of ten years’ regeneration activity taking place in Ancoats.

Eddie Smith, chief executive of New East Manchester said: “This event has really captured the public’s imagination and people have come up with some brilliantly creative ideas.  The day promises to be a memorable one for everyone that attends. We are offering a free afternoon of fun and hope that as many people as possible, both from the local community and further a field, join us to celebrate a decade of regeneration.”

Peter Mearns, Executive Director of Marketing and Communications at the NWDA, said: "The regeneration of Ancoats into a heritage area where people want to live and businesses want to base themselves has made huge progress over the last decade. Cutting Room Experiment is an opportunity to open the new Cutting Room Square and to celebrate all that has been accomplished over the last ten years in an exciting and unique way.

"The success of Cutting Room Experiment depends upon the creativity and enthusiasm of the people of Manchester, and they have stepped up to the mark. They have come up with some truly inspired ideas to make this a non-stop day of events, activities and surprises. Cutting Room Experiment will not only be a wonderful way to show the outstanding heritage of Ancoats but also the energy and inventiveness of the city."

For more information visit: www.cuttingroomexperiment.com or www.neweastmanchester.com

The event is organised by Manchester-based events company, Ear to the Ground.

Media Contacts: Roz Hughes, NEM. T: 0161 223 1155 M: 07967 800395
And Sam Shale, NWDA. T: 01925 400264 M: 07717 427872

Ends

Notes to editors:

The line-up for the Cutting Room Experiment on Saturday, June 20 is as follows:

12noon -1pm
Art & craft - Swap ‘til you drop
An hour of clothes swapping and dancing around to music
 
1pm -1.30pm
Classical music - Cutting Room Orchestra
Uniting members from orchestras in Manchester to fill the Cutting Room Square and play

1pm - 3.30pm
Literature - Book of a 1000 authors
How many people can we get to write one book? Contribute a line or two to a book which will be read out later.

2pm - 6pm
Architecture - Faceless Identity
Masked participants generating a cardboard skyline. The European Architecture Student Assembly is coming back to England for the first time in its 30 year history; with the theme ‘identity’.

4pm - 4.45pm
Fun - Do you want me to?
A simple act of kindness leads to a mass photo

3.30pm - 4.30pm
Science - Alka Seltzer rockets
The Museum of Science and Industry makes the afternoon go with a whizz and a pop

5pm - 5.30pm
Dance - musical statues
Have some fun with a mass version of this children's party game, but with better music

5.30pm-6pm
Film - Looking for Eric
To celebrate the release of the Ken Loach film, we are calling all Erics

6pm - 7pm
Sport - Space Hopper Racing
An extreme Space Hopper race across the Cutting Room Square

7pm - 8pm
World Record Attempt - longest conga line
The current world record stands at 1,048 - can we beat this?

8pm - 8.15pm
The Boon Army Mini Flashmob
Inspiral Carpets and XFM’s Clint Boon will lead a sing-along of his favourite Manchester classics from his brand new boon army mini.
 
8.15pm - 10pm
Party - silent disco 
Let's go quietly at the end of the day with everyone's favourite tunes

Notes for Editors

Cutting Room Square is located between Blossom Street and Hood Street, off Great Ancoats Street, Manchester

Cutting Room Square itself will accommodate around 500 people.  In addition the adjacent street will be closed allowing for extra capacity for larger events.

Around £402million public and private sector funding has been committed to Ancoats. Plans are to provide 1,800 new residential properties, 60,000 square metres of new commercial floor space, accommodate 1,900 new jobs and transform eight hectares of derelict or underused brownfield land.

The Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) leads the economic development and regeneration of England's Northwest and is responsible for:
• Supporting business growth and encouraging investment
• Matching skills provision to employer needs
• Creating the conditions for economic growth
• Connecting the region through effective transport and communication infrastructure
• Promoting the region’s outstanding quality of life
For more information see www.nwda.co.uk/press

New East Manchester Ltd (NEM) is an Urban Regeneration Company - a partnership between Manchester City Council, the national housing and regeneration agency Homes & Communities Agency and the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA).  It is NEM's role to turn the Regeneration Framework into action, secure the required public and private funding, lead on specific major development projects, and co-ordinate regeneration and renewal initiatives in the area.
For more details about New East Manchester visit www.neweastmanchester.com.

Ear to the Ground is the company behind D-percussion, the North Pole bar and New Islington Festival as well as producing The Warehouse Project, Snowbombing, Manchester Pride and the launch of the European Capital of Culture 2008, Liverpool.