THE head of Glasgow’s bid to land Channel 4’s new national HQ has said success would create thousands of jobs with salaries of up to £200,000.
Stuart Cosgrove, Channel 4’s former controller of arts and entertainment and well known writer and broadcaster, said the posts would be created in addition to the transfer of around 300 staff from Channel 4’s 800-strong Westminster headquarters to a new base outside London, and would benefit the creative industries. The jobs will likely to be “high value” in order to attract top talent.
“Obviously making it [Glasgow] a major broadcasting centre means there are many more broadcasting jobs,” he said in an interview with the Sunday Herald. “You could be looking at thousands of [extra] jobs in the longer term, over the next decade or so. We’d see a real quality impact and the jobs would all be high value, with people earning between £40,000 and £200,000 a year.”
READ MORE: Glasgow is perfect place for Channel 4, say planning experts
Channel 4 is searching for a new base and two other hubs outside London. Glasgow could face competition from cities such as Liverpool, Cardiff, Manchester and Birmingham. The proposal to create a new headquarters outside London is part of a major restructuring planned by the channel.
Cosgrove said the prestige of Glasgow being home to Channel 4 and associated business opportunities would attract top players from the film and programme-making sector.
Cosgrove, who was also Channel 4’s head of programmes for nations and regions, said art and design companies would flow to the city if the broadcaster was based there, and he predicted that the jobs and income benefits would dramatically drive up living standards in Glasgow.
He added that Channel 4’s presence in Glasgow, alongside the existing BBC Pacific Quay site and Sky TV’s contact centre in Livingston, would make it one of the UK’s premier broadcasting locations.
Cosgrove said: “If Channel 4 was in Glasgow alongside Sky in Livingston and the BBC in Glasgow, you’ve almost got all those broadcasting giants in one city. All this would have a socially transformative impact on the city. There’s no question that Channel 4 would have a massively significant impact on Glasgow.”
Cosgrove’s remarks came after Nicola Sturgeon told a conference in the city that the “unique character” of Glasgow would be “a great fit for Channel 4”. Cosgrove also believes the move could help offset any negative economic impacts in Scotland as a result of Brexit.
“We don’t know what the impact of Brexit will be, but it could be quite damaging so having something like this is obviously going to be significant,” he said. “The reality is that while it’s the case that there could be an unknown like Brexit or independence, the value of Channel 4 is huge.”
C4 will not sell its London headquarters, but plans to establish a new base to house “creative decision makers who are spending money”.
Cosgrove said that despite Glasgow’s distance from London, its diversity made it an attractive location for Channel 4 experimental programme making. “While we may be the furthest city away from London, we are also the biggest and most diverse city outside London,” he said.
READ MORE: Glasgow is perfect place for Channel 4, say planning experts
Meanwhile, Holyrood’s culture committee convenor Joan McAlpine said a winning bid from Glasgow would be a game changer: “Moving Channel 4’s new national HQ to Glasgow would be a brilliant and bold move,” she said.
“Glasgow is a vibrant city with a wealth of diversity, culture, arts and music as well as a thriving independent production sector, creative industries and university links that would all help deliver Channel 4’s unique voice in broadcasting.
“There is no shortage of off-screen and on-screen talent and indeed untapped potential here in Glasgow, where some of Channel 4’s biggest hits like Location, Location, Location are already produced.
“Glasgow is ready to help strengthen Channel 4’s offering to its audiences, and as the Inbetweeners’ producer Chris Young has said, this would be a game changer for the Scottish film and television industry.”
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