Birmingham Walk of Stars

The Broad Street Walk of Stars is a walk of fame-style installation on the pedestrian pavement of Broad Street, Birmingham, England, which honours notable people from the Birmingham area or with significant connections with it. The scheme is organised and funded by the Broad Street Business Improvement District.

Star for Ozzy Osbourne on the canal bridge pavement of Broad Street

Criteria

The criteria for a person to have their star added to the walk include that they must have performed at one of Birmingham's major venues such as the International Convention Centre (ICC), National Indoor Arena (NIA), Symphony Hall and The Rep theatre. They must also be originally from the area or have prominent links with Birmingham and the Midlands region. The walk honours the residents of the city who have made a significant contribution in the categories of music, television, film, radio, theatre, sport, business and literacy.

History

The idea for a Walk of Fame style tribute was first thought of by a local Birmingham man Garry Raybould, who then approached the Broad Street Business Improvement District who developed the idea and created the name Broad Street Walk of Stars together with a brand and registration of the original website, www.walkofstars.co.uk which quickly became very popular and was chosen by Radio 2 as 'Website of the Day'. The first star to be honoured was Ozzy Osbourne on 6 July 2007. The event was held in Centenary Square and introduced by Elliott Webb from Birmingham's commercial radio station BRMB and the star was presented to Ozzy by Lord Mayor of Birmingham Randal Brew.[1] The Ozzy Osbourne presentation created £1.7M worth of worldwide publicity for the area.

Comedian Jasper Carrott was the second person to have a star installed on Broad Street on 15 September 2007. The star was presented to him by the Lord Mayor of Birmingham during ArtsFest in front of a 10,000 strong crowd.[2] In December 2007, Noddy Holder became the third inductee on the Walk of Stars which was presented to him on a canal boat, during the Broad Street Christmas Canal Boat Light Parade.

The stars were briefly fenced off following safety concerns about their polished surfaces. Leicestershire-based Charcon Specialist Products, who produced the stars, was consulted over the situation.[3]

Murray Walker was inducted into the Walk of Stars. A joint induction took place on 12 September 2008 for BBC Radio 4 series The Archers and cast member Norman Painting. On 7 October 2008, the BBC announced that Julie Walters would be inducted.[4] The following month founder member of Black Sabbath, Tony Iommi was inducted.

On 26 March 2009, it was announced that each of five local football clubs (Aston Villa,[5] Birmingham City, Walsall, West Bromwich Albion and Wolverhampton Wanderers) would have a star commemorating their teams, a player, or a specific era. The presentation ceremonies will be staggered between May and August.[6]

Stars honoured
NumberRecipientInduction dateProfessionCommentsImageLocation
1Ozzy Osbourne6 July 2007MusicianFounding member of Black Sabbath and solo artist52.47786°N 1.91099°W / 52.47786; -1.91099 (Ozzy Osbourne)
2Jasper Carrott15 September 2007ComedianComedian, actor and television presenter52.47539°N 1.91416°W / 52.47539; -1.91416 (Jasper Carrott)
3Noddy Holder9 December 2007MusicianMember of Slade52.47706°N 1.91200°W / 52.47706; -1.91200 (Noddy Holder)
4Murray Walker28 June 2008Sports commentatorBBC/ITV Formula One coverage52.47847°N 1.90880°W / 52.47847; -1.90880 (Murray Walker)
5The Archers12 September 2008Soap operaLong-running BBC Radio 4 serial52.47825°N 1.90978°W / 52.47825; -1.90978 (The Archers)
6Norman Painting12 September 2008ActorVoice of Phil Archer in The Archers52.47822°N 1.90985°W / 52.47822; -1.90985 (Norman Painting)
7Tony Iommi23 November 2008MusicianMember of Black Sabbath52.47827°N 1.91012°W / 52.47827; -1.91012 (Tony Iommi)
8Aston Villa F.C. 1982 Team4 May 2009Football team1982 European Cup-winning team52.47810°N 1.91054°W / 52.47810; -1.91054 (Aston Villa F.C.)
9Tony 'Bomber' Brown17 May 2009FootballerProfessional footballer from West Bromwich Albion F.C.52.47739°N 1.91158°W / 52.47739; -1.91158 (Tony Brown)
10Frank Skinner1 August 2009ComedianCo-Host of Fantasy Football League52.47727°N 1.91132°W / 52.47727; -1.91132 (Frank Skinner)
11Gil MerrickSeptember 2009FootballerProfessional footballer from Birmingham City F.C.52.47683°N 1.91230°W / 52.47683; -1.91230 (Gil Merrick)
12Ray GraydonSeptember 2009FootballerFormer manager of Walsall F.C.52.47848°N 1.90879°W / 52.47848; -1.90879 (Ray Graydon)
13Julie Walters27 October 2009Actress/ComedianStar of Educating Rita & Harry Potter Films52.47434°N 1.91575°W / 52.47434; -1.91575 (Julie Walters)
14Gary Newbon10 December 2009Television journalismSports Reporter52.47845°N 1.90880°W / 52.47845; -1.90880 (Gary Newbon)
15Lenny Henry19 December 2009Actor/ComedianPresenter of Tiswas52.47849°N 1.90879°W / 52.47849; -1.90879 (Lenny Henry)
16Beverley Knight20 March 2010Singer52.47846°N 1.90880°W / 52.47846; -1.90880 (Beverley Knight)
17Joan Armatrading4 May 2010Singer52.47828°N 1.90970°W / 52.47828; -1.90970 (Joan Armatrading)
18Chris TarrantAugust 2010BroadcasterHost of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire52.47841°N 1.90921°W / 52.47841; -1.90921 (Chris Tarrant)
19Birmingham Royal BalletSeptember 2010Dance52.47844°N 1.90947°W / 52.47844; -1.90947 (Birmingham Royal Ballet)
20David BintleySeptember 2010Dance52.47842°N 1.90955°W / 52.47842; -1.90955 (David Bintley)
21Roy WoodNovember 2010Singer MusicianMember of Electric Light Orchestra and Wizzard and The Move52.47824°N 1.91024°W / 52.47824; -1.91024 (Roy Wood)
22Bev BevanFebruary 2011Singer DrummerMember of Electric Light Orchestra and The Move52.47817°N 1.91004°W / 52.47817; -1.91004 (Bev Bevan)
23Matt Croucher GC16 June 2011Lance CorporalAwarded the George Cross in 2008
24Laurie Mansfield16 June 2011Theatrical agentRepresented Jim Davidson, Ken Dodd, Cannon & Ball, The Krankies, Tommy Steele, Eddie Large and Freddie Starr.[7]
25Sir Keith Porter16 June 2011Military Surgeon
26Nigel MansellAugust 2011Racing driver1992 Formula One World Champion52.47810°N 1.91021°W / 52.47810; -1.91021 (Nigel Mansell)
27Malkit SinghMay 2012Musician"King of Bhangra"
28Harry MoseleyAugust 2012Fundraising/Charity
29Jaki GrahamOctober 2012Singer
30Ellie SimmondsDecember 2012ParalympianMultiple Gold Medal winning swimmer
31David HarewoodJuly 2013ActorActor famous for his role in Homeland
32Jeff LynneMarch 2014Singer/Composer/MusicianMember of Electric Light Orchestra and The Move
33Trevor FrancisNovember 2014FootballerProfessional footballer from Birmingham City F.C.
34Ian Lavender22 June 2015ActorPrivate Pike in Dad's Army
35 Dennis Amiss11 February 2016CricketPlayed for England and Warwickshire and was ECB Deputy chairman
36 Ann Haydon-Jones11 February 2016TennisFirst left handed female Wimbledon winner
37 Toyah Willcox11 December 2016Singer Actress
38 Don Maclean11 December 2016Comedian Actor
39 Geezer Butler3 February 2018MusicianMember of Black Sabbath

Nominees

The Walk of Stars website lists other potential nominees on which the public are invited to vote. These include:

See also
  • List of Walks of Fame

References
  1. "Ozzy's Coming Home – 6 July 2007 3 pm – 4:30 pm". Birmingham Walk of Stars Broad Street. Archived from the original on 24 October 2007. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  2. Carrott on Brummie Walk of Stars, BBC News, 15 September 2007. Retrieved 6 November 2007.
  3. Walk of Stars is fenced off, Birmingham Mail, 26 October 2007. Retrieved 6 November 2007.
  4. BBC Birmingham – Julie Walters
  5. Greatrex, Jonny (18 April 2009). "Aston Villa legends take place on Walk of Stars". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 21 April 2009.
  6. "We're all about football this summer!". Walk of Stars. Retrieved 26 March 2009.
  7. "Laurie Mansfield clients".
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