Comment: Plain sailing for key city event

Jul 22 2008 Liverpool Daily Post

THE last sail has disappeared over the horizon and the Tall Ships Race 2008 is under way in earnest. Meanwhile, back at the port from which they sailed, the fever of excitement generated by the four-day festival is giving way to analysis of how Liverpool performed.

This was one of the key events in the Capital of Culture calendar; it is thought around one million people turned out to see the ships and hear the wonderful sea shanties. And the general view must surely be that, a few hitches aside, this was a triumph.

There were organisational problems on the opening day, Friday, and some grumbles from attendees about road closures, over-zealous stewarding and – confusingly – the huge size of the crowds.

Further, it is sad that the wider world did not get to see as much of the event as it might have done.

The London-centric media – so quick to visit Liverpool to report on gang crime or shootings – was conspicuous in its absence for this extravaganza, leading a number of readers to contact the Daily Post and suggest that, if the Tall Ships Race 2008 have been based on the Thames, for example, it might have been more widely covered by both national television and newspapers.

A number of spectators who settled at Otterspool to watch the Parade of Sail on Monday afternoon, as advised by the organisers, also complained they “saw no ships”, as the phrase goes.

It is impossible not to sympathise with anyone who has battled their way to Otterspool in the expectation of a wonderful spectacle, only to be disappointed.

But on the whole this was an amazing event, a four-day festival that truly showcased Liverpool as a port, a tourist destination, and a welcoming and friendly city, for both visitors and Tall Ships crews alike.

It was an event the city should feel very proud of hosting, and one which will live on in people’s memories for many years to come.