A remnder that deadline for submissions to the Noisefestival site is May 31st 2006.

“IT’S THE WRONG TROUSERS DOHERTY”

Wallace and Gromit Crowned ‘Most Inspirational’ by Britain’s Youth

It’s official, Wallace and Gromit lead the way in inspiring Britain’s youth of today to get involved in the creative arts - more than Peter Doherty, Chris Martin, Damien Hurst or Dizzee Rascal.

NOISE, the national arts and media festival for young people, together with MSN, the UK’s largest portal, published the results today following extensive research into what inspires the UK’s youth and influences them to be creative. 4,500 16-25 year old MSN users took part in the survey.

Top of the list of Inspirational figures are Wallace and Gromit (29%), the Arctic Monkeys (28%), Gorillaz (27%) and society in general (27%).

Nick Park says “This is great news, we’ve never made the Wallace and Gromit films for a specific audience so it’s extremely rewarding, to all of us at Aardman, that the films inspire this particular age group. Thank you to all that voted.”

It’s bad news for Pete Doherty (8%) as not only has he been beaten by Ordinary Boy Preston and his girlfriend Chantelle but his ex, Kate Moss, is also viewed as more inspirational taking 14% of the under 25’s votes. Even dwindling Tony Blair (9%) provides more creative inspiration than Pete. The top 25 is as follows:

1. Wallace and Gromit 29%
2. Arctic Monkeys 28%
3. Gorillaz 27%
4. Society 27%
5. Harry Potter 25%
6. Chris Martin (Coldplay) 23%
7. KT Tunstall 19%
8. Keira Knightley 18%
9. Big Brother 18%
10. David Beckham 15 %
11. Damien Hirst 14%
12. Kate Moss 14%
13. Chantelle Houghton 13%
14. Preston 13%
15. Dizzee Rascal 10%
16. Mario Testino (photographer) 9%
17. Tony Blair 9%
18. Pete Doherty 8%
19. The Royal family 8%
20. Stella McCartney 7%
21. Alexander McQueen 7%
22. Jude Law 6%
23. Tracey Emin 5%
24. John Galliano 4%
25. June Sarpong (TV Presenter) 4%

UK’s creative hotspots
The research revealed that the 16-25 year olds living in the North-West were the most creative with 72% deeming themselves creative. They were closely followed by the South East (71%), Wales (69%) and London (69%), with Yorkshire (61%) coming in at the bottom – officially the least creative place in the UK.

When asked how long they spent doing something creative each week (defined as doing art, music, design, games etc) over a third (35%) spent 1-3 hours a week dedicated to ‘being creative’. Nearly one in three (29.6%) spent 4-6 hour while a fifth spent as much as 11 hours or more.

Peter Mearns, Director of Marketing at the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA), the organisation responsible for the economic development of the Northwest and one of the main supporters of the NOISE Festival, said:

“England’s Northwest has long been recognised as one of the most creative areas in the UK and the NWDA welcomes the findings of this survey, which reinforces the region’s position as a prime creative hotspot. Home to a world class creative and cultural industries sector, the Northwest presents enormous opportunities for young people looking for a career in the industry, and the NOISE Festival offers an innovative and unique showcase for their work.”

TV still the main influencer
Britain’s youth are still predominately influenced by television with 60% claiming it’s the most persuasive media. Online (59%) came a very close second, with newspapers languishing last with only 12% naming them as shaping the way they think.

Denise Proctor Executive Producer of Noise explains “The result is not what we were expecting, this is a truly striking result because it shows that British youth have a strongly defined idea of what creativity is, that they admire this abiding creative British brand which is recognised internationally.”

Commenting on the research and collaboration with NOISE, MSN’s marketing manager Suzanne Cook says; “NOISE demonstrates a lot of synergy with MSN and felt like an obvious partner to collaborate with. MSN Spaces is a great medium to share music, pictures and be creative so we’re happy to be playing a small part in helping the next rock star, fashion designer or artist showcase their work.”

NOISE is an arts and media festival for young people. From now until 31st May 2006, youths 25 and under can submit work, which can be anything from music, art, and fashion, to design and film making. The closing date for entries to NOISE is open until 31st May 2006 via www.noisefestival.com. NOISE will showcase the best entries at an event in October 2006.