Banksy, Britten and The Darkness inspire youngsters
Composer Benjamin Britten, The Darkness and Banksy are being cited as positive influences for young people in an English seaside town.
Six students from three different high schools in Lowestoft have used the inspirations to help them write the 2025 Suffolk Day proclamation.
Their words, focusing on a "brighter future" for Britain's most easterly town, have been read at the Houses of Parliament ahead of a ceremony in Lowestoft on Suffolk Day - which is taking place on Saturday 21 June.
Suffolk Day, inspired by Yorkshire Day, was started in 2017 and is celebrated on the summer solstice, as Ness Point is the first to see the sunrise.
Lily-Rose and Tilly from Benjamin Britten Academy, Beth and Ella from Ormiston Denes Academy, and Willow and Naomi from East Point Academy each wrote parts of the proclamation.
It starts with: "We want to tell you about the bright future that awaits Lowestoft. A place where creativity and community thrive."
Beth, 15, included references to Suffolk councils declaring a climate crisis in 2019, and pledging action.
She said: "It does provide our area with hope, because we can see the impact it has had on our local area."
The proclamation continues: "Art and culture are the bright future of Lowestoft.
"We are the birthplace of Benjamin Britten and his inspirational music that transcended the globe.
"We are the canvas for Banksy's spraycation. We are home to three flourishing theatres.
"Moreover, Lowestoft was the maiden voyage for the award-winning band The Darkness."
Lily-Rose said: "There's a lot of art around the town. They've done lots to incorporate arts and culture where we live."
The proclamation continues: "As we look ahead, Lowestoft stands tall as a beacon of progress and pride - a town where the spirit of innovation meets the warmth of tradition.
"From our historic roots to our forward-thinking future, we are a community united by purpose and place."
The Suffolk Day ceremony includes presenting medals to celebrate community achievements, and moves to a different host town each year.
This year events in Lowestoft coincide with the annual First Light Festival, which takes place on the beach on Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 June.
Follow Suffolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
The Darkness squash Latitude 'bugbear'
Benjamin Britten statue will be put up next summer
'Wow moment' as work begins on offshore wind farm
A guide to Banksy's 'Great British Spraycation'
Suffolk Day
First Light Festival
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
'Pretty Little Liars' cast and creator discuss the 'wildly inappropriate' age gap relationships in the series
It's been 15 years since Pretty Little Liars premiered on ABC Family and gave fans one of TV's most controversial couples: Aria Montgomery and Ezra Fitz. The couple, played by Lucy Hale and Ian Harding, was one of the show's most talked about couples for its depiction of a teacher-student relationship with a noticeable age-gap, but it was far from the only problematic coupling. Looking back on PLL's iconic seven-season run with the Hollywood Reporter, the stars and creator Marlene King admit that the couple is one they "probably" wouldn't include if they remade the show today. "What we know now about grooming, that was not something we talked about 15 years ago," King told the outlet. "I've always thought that if we revisit the world, we would have to deal with that. That would be a storyline we'd have to pay attention to and give focus to. But I think they can have their happily ever after because they were everybody's favorite couple." Aria and Ezra - couple name: Ezria - met at a bar right before Aria began her junior year of high school and became the show's longest-running couple despite the fact that it was fairly controversial to have a college graduate/high school English teacher kiss his 16-year-old student. King noted, "We were definitely probably crossing a line I wouldn't cross now, but I don't want to take away from what they had, either. It was very satisfying for a lot of fans." Harding has been known to give his character a hard time, once jokingly referring to Ezra as "America's most beloved pedophile" in his memoir Odd Birds, published in 2017. While he acknowledges that it isn't a pairing that would easily be digested in this decade, he hopes that the couple's "meaningful connection" is "enough to justify the deeply problematic relationship that was certainly not great at the time." "As society has progressed, we realized how wildly inappropriate it was," Harding added. "But at the same time, just because you depict something on TV doesn't mean you condone the behavior," he pointed out. "It is a story meant for entertainment, and the show was a thriller. Now that I look back on it, I see that it was just like the show, with the twists and turns, and it had some horror elements and then it also had this romance component. So I don't deeply regret it, because it's fiction. But I also realize that it did bring up a lot of harder discussions about what is actually considered abuse and what is considered love." Harding reasoned that, despite their trials and tribulations, Aria and Ezra "found happiness, and there was little collateral damage or pain inflicted by the relationship. There was plenty of pain and horror everywhere on the show, but oddly enough, their relationship seemed to be a safe haven in the storm." "There's no part of me that is feeling such great shame for having played this part. I don't have any apologies for playing this character," Harding emphasized. "I do think he was definitely icky in some knowledge, but on the whole, he's fictional." On the other hand, Hale has always been a strong proponent for the couple, even if she can acknowledge how it's a relic of "a different time." "At the time I was cast as Aria, I was 19 years old and I wasn't really thinking about the bigger themes of it all," the actress told THR. "I was just stoked to be cast in a TV show. Of course, it hits differently at my age now and I think about the bigger message in anything I play."But despite the ire it may cause with some viewers over a decade later, Hale said she doesn't have regrets about bringing them onscreen. "I stand behind their love story forever. That forbidden love story drew a lot of people in." Of course, Ezria was far from the only couple in Pretty Little Liars that had a troubling age Bellisario's Spencer Hastings got caught up with two older men during her time on the show, and star Sasha Pieterse was only 12 years old when they shot the pilot and in her early teens while shooting opposite actors considerably older than her. In Pieterse's experience, working on PLL with the awkward age gaps was something that "never felt weird in the moment." As a mother herself now, the actress said she's "very aware" of the dynamics in a different way. "When I go back [and watch] I think, 'How did I feel filming that?' I always felt protected," she recalled. "But it's a weird thing that we do because even though everybody else was over 18, those storylines are still depicting minors. I feel comfortable with it, but it's an odd thing to wrap your head around." Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Video: Owner Shares Cat's ‘Meows of Fame' & Netizens Love It
The internet can't stop chuckling over a hilarious video that captured a cat's different 'meows of fame.' Bean and Lily, a sweet and sassy feline duo who boast over 426K followers on Instagram, have continued to prove with their fun content that there's never a dull moment with them. In fact, one of the kitties' meows is entertaining in itself because there is a different sound for various situations, and it is as funny as it sounds. Bean, a popular cat on Instagram, proved there is no match for his meows game after a hilarious video went viral. The internet is left in stitches over the different sounds that the feline can make. Clearly, Bean has got the skills, and he never shies away from flaunting them. The fur baby's 'meows of fame' have garnered much attention as each sound perfectly matches the various situations. The first sound shown in the video was the 'concussion meow.' It could have been an 'ouch' in cat language, as it came after Bean hit his head underneath the table. The next one was the 'French meow.' The feline could be seen making an accelerated sound while walking in the hallway. The 'endless meow' came up next and showed Bean running around. Furthermore, the 'opera meow' showed the kitten belting out some high notes. Then came the audience's favorite, Bean's 'ghost meow.' The clip showed the furry one making a creepy sound while walking in the dark. The following ones were the 'chainsaw meow,' the 'downhill meow' while going down the stairs, the 'senior meow,' the 'doorbell meow,' and the 'earthquake meow.' Meanwhile, it appears even the kitty's owner is amazed by his meowing forte. They wrote in the Instagram Reel's caption, 'I don't know how these sounds come out of Bean's mouth.' The video clearly left netizens amused, as it has racked up over 12 million views and one million likes on the platform. The post Video: Owner Shares Cat's 'Meows of Fame' & Netizens Love It appeared first on CatTime.
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
Teachers Who Are Fed Up With Parents Not Taking Part In Their Child's Education — Tell Us What You Wish They'd Do
As a former high school English teacher, I can list all the ways I thought I'd see parents get involved in their child's education — and all the ways it rarely happened. It's unfortunately not an uncommon experience for educators. So I'm asking teachers (past and present) in our BuzzFeed Community to share ways they wish parents took on a more active role in their child's education. Related: Your Wedding Preferences Will Reveal Your Inner Disney Princess Maybe you, like me, used to teach English literature, and found yourself sending progress reports home regularly for students falling behind. However, no one seemed to respond until report cards hit their mailbox. Then, several parents wanted to know what extra credit opportunities could be made available for their kid who was missing dozens of assignments. TV Land / Related: Most People Can't Ace This US Geography Good Luck! Maybe you're an elementary school teacher, and one of your students keeps getting physical with others. Not only is it flat-out mean, but it's also a distraction in the classroom. You've tried to host guided conversations with the parents about techniques that could curb the behavior at home, but the parents refuse to believe it's happening at all. Or, maybe there's a student in your class who is never IN class. Their parent pulls them out of school for vacations monthly. And while you love that the kid is getting to live their best life, it's very hard to keep them on track, and you wish their parents could at least keep them up to date on their studies while abroad. Whatever the case may be, we want to hear about it. Teachers, tell us how you wish parents got more involved in their child's education in the comments. Or, if you'd like to remain anonymous, use the Google form below. Your response could be featured in an upcoming post. Also in Community: Your McDonald's UK Order Will Reveal The Perfect Summer Activity For You Also in Community: I'm Sorry, But Every American Should Be Able To Pass This Basic-Level US States Quiz Also in Community: Which Disney Princess Are You? Build A $500 Outfit To Find Out
