Who would you add to Brighton's Walk of Fame? (From The Argus)

Who would you add to Brighton's Walk of Fame?

7:30am Wednesday 26th September 2012 in News By John Keenan

The Brighton Walk of Fame will soon be on the move.

Plans are under way to move the cultural attraction from Brighton Marina to a location in the centre of the city.

The 100 specially carved plaques bearing the names of stars and personalities with close connections to the city are the brainchild of David Courtney.

The producer and songwriter had the idea when he was living in Los Angeles following the success of his work with singer-songwriter Leo Sayer .

But he was determined to make the Brighton version fundamentally different. He decided that Brighton would pay tribute to famous individuals from across the historic, creative and sporting spectrum with inductees voted for by the community.

Hollywood pays homage to the world of entertainment with their inductees determined by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, and a fee of $25,000 is usually paid for by the recipient’s associated company such as film or record label.

Established in 2002 the Brighton Walk of Fame was the first cultural attraction of its kind in the country.

The concept has now been adopted in Bristol with The Bristol Walk of Fame which was launched in 2011 located at Bristol Zoo and Mr Courtney is working with Camden Council on The Music Walk of Fame which will be an international iconic legacy to contemporary music with direct links to Hollywood to be located along the complete length of a street launching in May next year.

Now a Brighton Walk of Fame anniversary dinner on December 7 at The Grand hotel in Brighton will raise funds for The Argus Appeal.

It will feature guest host Mike Read with Jimmy Tarbuck and music from the Live Aces. The event will launch a phone hotline for the public to choose six new names to be honoured.

Mr Courtney said: “Outside of family and my music the Walk of Fame has been one of the most rewarding projects I have been involved with.

“To realise what was an idea originally inspired from my time living in LA to establishing what has since become regarded as a ‘Brighton Institution’ was a fantastic feeling and achievement, moreover because I was given the opportunity to establish |the first one in my birthplace of Brighton.

“The walk was introduced with 100 names celebrated with a lavish launch party at Brighton Marina with my |old sparring partner Leo Sayer performing live to an audience of celebrities, dignitaries and special guests and brought a taste and spirit of Hollywood to Brighton. It was great to see the cross section of famous people meeting each other for the first time.

“It was very rewarding to receive comments from inductees acknowledging the walk as a true accolade because they were voted for by the people.

“Over the past years we have inducted three honouree awards including the famous ‘Brighton Belle’ train with a plaque installed in the concourse of Brighton station, ‘The Sea Life Centre’ and more recently the ‘Grand Hotel’.

“I am extremely excited with the prospect of relocating ‘The Brighton Walk of Fame to a major site within the city, planned for 2013/14 which will enhance its profile and visibility to tourists and visitors.

“We are delighted to be working with The Argus Appeal and The Argus who will be conducting the 2012 inductee voting campaign as in previous years.”

 

Worthy recipients of this honour

• Leo Sayer
• Des Lynam
• Anna Wing
• Nigel Kennedy

 

Who would you like to see added to the Walk of Fame?

The gala dinner at the Grand Hotel in Kings Road, Brighton, on December 7 will be the lauch of a special hotline for the public to vote on new inductees to the Brighton Walk of Fame. 

Six new names will be chosen to be honoured. These will include, for the first time, a Local Hero, who will be honoured with his or her own plaque. 

Among the suggestions for the new inductees are: Simon Cowell, Natasha Kaplinsky, Holly Willoughby, Nick Cave, Chris Difford and Gus Poyet. 

But what do you think? We will feature your suggestions and ideas in the run up to the launch of the hotline. Email john.keenan@theargus.co.uk or leave a comment below. 

Tables and tickets for the gala dinner are now on sale. For more information go to www.walkoffame.co.uk .