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| Made in Stoke-on-Trent: did our documentary do it justice? Stokies respond | Made in Stoke-on-Trent: did our documentary do it justice? Stokies respond |
| (3 days later) | |
| Representations matter ‘when you’ve only ever seen your city portrayed as the butt of a joke’, a Stokie says of John Domokos’ eight-part documentary | |
| Watch Made in Stoke-on-Trent here | |
| Guardian readers and | |
| Elle Hunt | |
| Fri 12 Jan 2018 07.00 GMT | |
| Last modified on Fri 12 Jan 2018 10.47 GMT | |
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| With his eight-part documentary, John Domokos set out to show a different side to Stoke-on-Trent – more full, less negative – than the one typically portrayed by the media. But did he succeed? | With his eight-part documentary, John Domokos set out to show a different side to Stoke-on-Trent – more full, less negative – than the one typically portrayed by the media. But did he succeed? |
| We asked Stokies to share their views on the series. An edited selection of your responses is below. | We asked Stokies to share their views on the series. An edited selection of your responses is below. |
| ‘Leave voters from Stoke wear ‘Brexit capital’ as a badge of honour’ | ‘Leave voters from Stoke wear ‘Brexit capital’ as a badge of honour’ |
| I sincerely hope the videos go some way to countering the dehumanising denigration of working-class people perpetuated by patronising, middle-class types who decided opposition to the EU could only be motivated by xenophobia and/or stupidity, instead of by common sense. When your country has a shortage of housing, it’s perfectly sensible to consider ways to reduce the rate of population growth while building more houses. | I sincerely hope the videos go some way to countering the dehumanising denigration of working-class people perpetuated by patronising, middle-class types who decided opposition to the EU could only be motivated by xenophobia and/or stupidity, instead of by common sense. When your country has a shortage of housing, it’s perfectly sensible to consider ways to reduce the rate of population growth while building more houses. |
| People from Stoke were annoyed with the portrayal of our city as nothing but a barren wasteland and not, as stated, the “negative press ... calling their city the ‘Brexit capital of Britain’”. Indeed, I have yet to meet a single Leave voter from Stoke – and I have met many – who is fed up with this sobriquet, who doesn’t wear it as a badge of honour (as I do), or who would regard our democratic victory as anything other than positive. | People from Stoke were annoyed with the portrayal of our city as nothing but a barren wasteland and not, as stated, the “negative press ... calling their city the ‘Brexit capital of Britain’”. Indeed, I have yet to meet a single Leave voter from Stoke – and I have met many – who is fed up with this sobriquet, who doesn’t wear it as a badge of honour (as I do), or who would regard our democratic victory as anything other than positive. |
| Stoke-on-Trent had passed the point of no return by the late 1980s | Stoke-on-Trent had passed the point of no return by the late 1980s |
| I am not going to pretend that Stoke-on-Trent hasn’t had a problem with pockets of support for toxic ultra-nationalist groups, or deny that voting Leave was the obvious choice for the minuscule minority of true foreigner-hating white nationalists. But I do not accept that the widespread opposition to free movement which drove the city’s decision to leave the EU was anything other than considered, rational, and based on perfectly valid economic concerns – and not based on hatred or intolerance. Mark Breeze, Stoke-on-Trent | I am not going to pretend that Stoke-on-Trent hasn’t had a problem with pockets of support for toxic ultra-nationalist groups, or deny that voting Leave was the obvious choice for the minuscule minority of true foreigner-hating white nationalists. But I do not accept that the widespread opposition to free movement which drove the city’s decision to leave the EU was anything other than considered, rational, and based on perfectly valid economic concerns – and not based on hatred or intolerance. Mark Breeze, Stoke-on-Trent |
| ‘It was heartening to see the real Stoke’ | ‘It was heartening to see the real Stoke’ |
| My dad’s family are from Stoke and it’s still somewhere I refer to as home. However, like so many of my generation I moved away 20 years ago in search of “better prospects”. I felt moved by the documentary, as in a way I feel we’ve let the city down by removing our skills. I’m very fond of the city and have so much respect for its people and history. | My dad’s family are from Stoke and it’s still somewhere I refer to as home. However, like so many of my generation I moved away 20 years ago in search of “better prospects”. I felt moved by the documentary, as in a way I feel we’ve let the city down by removing our skills. I’m very fond of the city and have so much respect for its people and history. |
| While Bristol, where I live, works hard to create a sense of community, it will probably never match that portrayed in the documentary, as only the people of Stoke could create something that special. It’s a shame those who could really help the city are bystanders while others graft to achieve real positive change in a way that’s true to their roots. It was heartening to see the real Stoke and not the lazy media portrayal of a Ukip stronghold. Lucy, via Formstack | While Bristol, where I live, works hard to create a sense of community, it will probably never match that portrayed in the documentary, as only the people of Stoke could create something that special. It’s a shame those who could really help the city are bystanders while others graft to achieve real positive change in a way that’s true to their roots. It was heartening to see the real Stoke and not the lazy media portrayal of a Ukip stronghold. Lucy, via Formstack |
| ‘Optimism harks back to “good old days” that are not coming back’ | ‘Optimism harks back to “good old days” that are not coming back’ |
| I genuinely feel that some of the optimism shown is being significantly overplayed. I’m from the Longton area of Stoke and I am currently living here again after returning from overseas to care for my ailing parents. In my view, Stoke-on-Trent had passed the point of no return by the late 1980s. Without its strong industrial base, it now has no real reason to exist, and some of the contributors’ initiatives – be it the YMCA bloke’s reference to “plate-turners”, or the woman talking about creating a “community ceramics social enterprise” in the disused pub – are quite regressive in outlook. It’s all harking back to a time that has gone; the “good old days” of pots, pits and steel are not coming back. | I genuinely feel that some of the optimism shown is being significantly overplayed. I’m from the Longton area of Stoke and I am currently living here again after returning from overseas to care for my ailing parents. In my view, Stoke-on-Trent had passed the point of no return by the late 1980s. Without its strong industrial base, it now has no real reason to exist, and some of the contributors’ initiatives – be it the YMCA bloke’s reference to “plate-turners”, or the woman talking about creating a “community ceramics social enterprise” in the disused pub – are quite regressive in outlook. It’s all harking back to a time that has gone; the “good old days” of pots, pits and steel are not coming back. |
| These initiatives, while worthy and all that, are the same sticking-plaster solutions that have consistently failed in the forgotten de-industrialised towns of the Midlands and the north. Yes, it’s great that people are trying to see the bright side and improve things. But fully coordinated responses to the issues faced in post-industrial cities and towns like Stoke never materialised, so is it any wonder that despair and resignation took hold? To my mind, it’s just too damn late, and I sympathise with Nikki in the series, who states: “All you get is people like them: ‘We can sort it’. No, you can’t sort an estate like this.” TwistedMechanic | These initiatives, while worthy and all that, are the same sticking-plaster solutions that have consistently failed in the forgotten de-industrialised towns of the Midlands and the north. Yes, it’s great that people are trying to see the bright side and improve things. But fully coordinated responses to the issues faced in post-industrial cities and towns like Stoke never materialised, so is it any wonder that despair and resignation took hold? To my mind, it’s just too damn late, and I sympathise with Nikki in the series, who states: “All you get is people like them: ‘We can sort it’. No, you can’t sort an estate like this.” TwistedMechanic |
| ‘Stoke’s geography puts it at a disadvantage’ | ‘Stoke’s geography puts it at a disadvantage’ |
| I grew up in the area and in some respects, Stoke has a lot going for it. However, many analyses miss just how disadvantageous its geography is. For historic reasons the railway station, the main hospital, the university and other institutions aren’t actually in the city centre, and the middle-class is more likely to live in the nicer suburbs of the neighbouring Newcastle-under-Lyme – meaning the city is missing the sort of political advocacy and engagement that comes when those professional classes congregate. | I grew up in the area and in some respects, Stoke has a lot going for it. However, many analyses miss just how disadvantageous its geography is. For historic reasons the railway station, the main hospital, the university and other institutions aren’t actually in the city centre, and the middle-class is more likely to live in the nicer suburbs of the neighbouring Newcastle-under-Lyme – meaning the city is missing the sort of political advocacy and engagement that comes when those professional classes congregate. |
| First impressions count and, to be honest, if I knew nothing about the place and was judging on a brief visit, I’d think it was a monumental shit hole. Which, in my view, it isn’t. The problems of Stoke run much deeper than Brexit, which is almost irrelevant to this discussion. The social enterprises described in this series, while very laudable, are realistically unlikely to halt the economic decline of the city. A radical overhaul of the UK’s benefits and taxation system (land value tax, universal income) would change the incentives for investment and might improve things in Stoke and similar areas. Philip | First impressions count and, to be honest, if I knew nothing about the place and was judging on a brief visit, I’d think it was a monumental shit hole. Which, in my view, it isn’t. The problems of Stoke run much deeper than Brexit, which is almost irrelevant to this discussion. The social enterprises described in this series, while very laudable, are realistically unlikely to halt the economic decline of the city. A radical overhaul of the UK’s benefits and taxation system (land value tax, universal income) would change the incentives for investment and might improve things in Stoke and similar areas. Philip |
| ‘Representation matters when Stoke is only ever portrayed as a joke’ | ‘Representation matters when Stoke is only ever portrayed as a joke’ |
| I had a happy time growing up in the hinterlands of Stoke, but as I hit my late teens the reality of the place began to bite. The pull of Manchester in one direction and Birmingham in the other is strong for young people and it has created a steady flow of people away from the city – of my half dozen closest school friends, only one hasn’t ended up in Manchester. | I had a happy time growing up in the hinterlands of Stoke, but as I hit my late teens the reality of the place began to bite. The pull of Manchester in one direction and Birmingham in the other is strong for young people and it has created a steady flow of people away from the city – of my half dozen closest school friends, only one hasn’t ended up in Manchester. |
| Trivial it may sound, but Stoke City getting promoted to the Premier League did a lot to lift the mood of the town. Having a (currently) Premier League football team effectively compels the national and international media to come to the city and report on something other than deprivation 19 times a year. When you’ve only ever seen your city portrayed on a national scale as the butt of a joke, that means a lot. Andy Walton, Manchester | Trivial it may sound, but Stoke City getting promoted to the Premier League did a lot to lift the mood of the town. Having a (currently) Premier League football team effectively compels the national and international media to come to the city and report on something other than deprivation 19 times a year. When you’ve only ever seen your city portrayed on a national scale as the butt of a joke, that means a lot. Andy Walton, Manchester |
| ‘Stoke has so much potential; it just needs resources’ | ‘Stoke has so much potential; it just needs resources’ |
| Whenever I tell people I’m from Stoke-on-Trent, I see them wince. They say “Oh, I went through there on the train once”, or “That’s near Alton Towers, right?”. What they don’t realise is that Stoke is full of some of the nicest and most generous people you can find. The pottery industry has left a legacy of pride and creativity. Generations of creating things of beauty have made people more resourceful and more willing to see the potential in things. Much like a lump of earth can make a dinner service, Stoke has the potential to become so much more than it is currently. It just needs the resources and support to make use of the energy and loyalty of its residents. Alice, via Formstack | Whenever I tell people I’m from Stoke-on-Trent, I see them wince. They say “Oh, I went through there on the train once”, or “That’s near Alton Towers, right?”. What they don’t realise is that Stoke is full of some of the nicest and most generous people you can find. The pottery industry has left a legacy of pride and creativity. Generations of creating things of beauty have made people more resourceful and more willing to see the potential in things. Much like a lump of earth can make a dinner service, Stoke has the potential to become so much more than it is currently. It just needs the resources and support to make use of the energy and loyalty of its residents. Alice, via Formstack |
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