Sarah's story

Basingstoke – Town of Culture? 

My initial response on hearing that Basingstoke was pitching for the first ever Town of Culture bid was “Well, we won't get that”. I think the kneejerk reaction was that there will be too much competition, that we don’t have enough to distinguish ourselves from every other mid sized town in the running and that we don’t do anything groundbreaking enough to shout about.  

And then I really told myself off. I was born and bred here, and know better than most that culture isn’t just a pleasant addition to living in the borough, its at the very heart of Basingstoke’s identity and has made the town the vibrant and interesting place it is today.  

One of my earliest cultural memories is visiting Basing House as a school trip at primary school, it was back when you were still allowed to crawl through the tunnel, and I remember thinking how cool it was that hundreds of years before me people had done the exact same thing – during a battle! When I learned that Queen Elizabeth I had actually walked on that very ground I remember being absolutely astounded. Royalty came to Basingstoke?! It was the first time that I realised I lived somewhere pretty cool – somewhere with stories, somewhere with history and culture.  

I was lucky enough to attend a school that supported the arts, and have a family that encouraged them. I deafened my parents tunelessly learning the recorder, and then progressed onto the flute. I like to think I became slightly less tuneless as time went on, but maybe don’t ask my parents to verify that fact! I played in the school orchestra at what was then Basingstoke Music and Arts Festival, and our rendition of “Can you feel the love tonight” won first place in our category. I still think of playing as part of the orchestra when I hear that song. As a student who was dreadful at Maths, beyond reproach at PE and fairly average across other academic subjects, finding something that I was passionate about was transformative. Theatre was that something. I took dance classes, I learned instruments, I went to panto, I sang musicals and if I was ever off school poorly I watched Singin’ in the rain and Rex Harrison in Dr Dolitte  on VHS (Still my comfort movies to this day). I have such fond memories of Balloons over Basingstoke, Basingstoke Live (later B LOVE) and countless trips to theatre, circus and live music, all experiences which helped grow my love of art and culture, and many of which took place within 5 miles of my front door.  

I went on to QMC, performed in Central Studio, learned about lighting, sound and stage management and was guided towards my next step – a degree in Professional Production Skills. I trained just up the road in Guildford at GSA, while still working at Central Studio to pay for my increasingly expensive theatre obsession! Before I had even graduated, I was lucky enough to work Edinburgh Fringe, be offered a UK and Ireland tour as an Assistant Stage Manager, and once I had completed my degree came back to Basingstoke where I worked for Proteus Theatre Company for six years. Since then I have freelanced, worked for pantomime and comedy companies, and now work for Zeal, a Lighting Production and Design Company who work largely in live music. I still regularly attend and review theatre, sit on the board for an amazing local theatre CIC – Scratch Built – and regularly enjoy events throughout the borough including Let’s Glow, Basingstoke Festival, Basingstoke Pride and the Scratch Built family shows.  

My passion was born in Basingstoke, and I am proud that working in a cultural organisation means that I can give something back. Can Basingstoke do better? Of course it can, but it is utterly wrong to suggest that we aren’t exceptionally strong candidates for the first ever Town of Culture. I have well and truly slapped my own wrist for my initial negativity, and will be doing the same to anyone else I hear espousing the same!