In my work as a North East commercial and PR photographer I know how lucky I am to live in such a
beautiful region, among people with warmth, a great sense of humour and tons of
community spirit, and the news that the next series of Channel4’s Benefits Street was to be filmed on Kingston Road on the Tilery estate in Stockton saw
feelings running high here in the region.
All of which meant I was
delighted to be asked to cover the Positively Stockton on Tees (Psst...) campaign, the world’s biggest ever game of Chinese Whispers, designed to spread
positive messages about the town.
Fronted by Wildcats of
Kilkenny’s Mike McGrother and world and European champion sprinter Richard
Kilty, the event ran over March 13th and 14th and saw
colourful clowns from the Urban Kaos street dance group escorting the message along
a human chain using transport ranging from buses and bikes to rowing boats and
jet-skis, and raising money for Comic Relief along the way.
Weeks of planning went into
the shoot to make sure we were in the right place at the right time to capture
pictures that would generate positive PR for the town.
I was kept on my toes shooting documentary photography in venues including shopping centres, schools, a care home, a bike rally and a bowling green, plus the organisers had publicised a handful of spots where locals could take part, such as Infinity Bridge and Ropner Park in Stockton, and Preston Hall at Eaglescliffe. These drew crowds of people all keen to join the chain and pass on the secret that Stockton on Tees is a great place to live and work.
All ages took part, from
children through to people in their 90s, and included everyone from
hairdressers and traffic wardens to police officers and passers-by, all very
happy to have their photos taken and making the my job easy.
My biggest challenge as a
photographer was to stay on the move while editing the photos and sending
across to the client so they could be out via social media streams as the event
happened. I prefer a combination
of a lightweight laptop for flexibility and speed without sacrificing the
quality of the images.
Finishing off on Saturday at
Wynyard Hall, the event was very well received and a lot of fun to be part
of. All credit to the organisers –
the whisper campaign was a perfect way to celebrate community pride in the face
of a series seeking to paint Stockton in an unfair light on national television.
The first series of Benefits Street generated huge national controversy around its portrayal of people
living on benefits, and the airing of series two has been delayed due to
General Election restrictions so it remains to be seen how it portrays our
town. But I was proud to play my
part in the ‘Positively Stockton on Tees’ campaign using positive images that
will help to counteract any negative publicity generated by the series.