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Liverpool

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description: Liverpool /ˈlɪvərpuːl/ is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, United Kingdom along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted c ...
Liverpool /ˈlɪvərpuːl/ is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, United Kingdom along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880. In 2011 the population administered by Liverpool City Council was 466,415[4] and is at the centre of a wider urban area, the Liverpool City Region.[5]

Historically, Liverpool was a part of Lancashire. The city's urbanisation and expansion were largely brought about by the city's status as a major port. By the 18th century, trade from the West Indies, Ireland and mainland Europe, coupled with close links with the Atlantic slave trade, furthered the economic expansion of Liverpool. Liverpool is also well known for its inventions and innovations, particularly in terms of infrastructure, transport, general construction, and in the fields of public health and social reform. Railways, ferries and the skyscraper were all pioneered in the city, together with the first societies for animal and child protection, the first schools for the blind, for working-men, and for girls. Liverpool was the port of registry of the ocean liner, the RMS Titanic, and the words Titanic, Liverpool could be seen on the stern of the ship.

Inhabitants of Liverpool are referred to as Liverpudlians but are also colloquially known as "Scousers", in reference to the local dish known as "scouse", a form of stew. The word "Scouse" has also become synonymous with the Liverpool accent and dialect.[6] Liverpool's status as a port city has contributed to its diverse population, which, historically, were drawn from a wide range of peoples, cultures, and religions, particularly those from Ireland. The city is also home to the oldest Black African community in the country and the oldest Chinese community in Europe.

Labelled the World Capital City of Pop by Guinness World Records, artists of Liverpool origin have produced more number one singles than any other.[7] The popularity of The Beatles, Billy Fury, Gerry and the Pacemakers, and the other groups from the Merseybeat era, and later bands such as Echo & the Bunnymen and Frankie Goes to Hollywood, contributes to Liverpool's status as a tourist destination; tourism forms a significant part of the city's modern economy. The city celebrated its 800th anniversary in 2007, and it held the European Capital of Culture title together with Stavanger, Norway, in 2008.[8]

Liverpool is noted for its rich architectural heritage and is home to many buildings regarded as amongst the greatest examples of their respective styles in the world. Several areas of the city centre were granted World Heritage Site status by UNESCO in 2004. Referred to as the Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City, the site comprises six separate locations in the city including the Pier Head, Albert Dock and William Brown Street and includes many of the city's most famous landmarks.[9]

Liverpool is also well known for its strong sporting identity. The city is home of two Premier League football clubs, Liverpool F.C. and Everton F.C. Matches between the two clubs are known as the Merseyside derby. The world-famous Grand National also takes places annually at Aintree Racecourse on the outskirts of the city.

HistoryMain article: History of Liverpool
See also: Timeline of Liverpool history
 
A map of Liverpool from 1947
A map of Liverpool's original seven streets (north to the left)Early historyKing John's letters patent of 1207 announced the foundation of the borough of Liverpool, but by the middle of the 16th century the population was still only around 500. The original street plan of Liverpool is said to have been designed by King John near the same time it was granted a royal charter, making it a borough. The original seven streets were laid out in a H shape: Bank Street (now Water Street), Castle Street, Chapel Street, Dale Street, Juggler Street (now High Street), Moor Street (now Tithebarn Street) and Whiteacre Street (now Old Hall Street).

In the 17th century there was slow progress in trade and population growth. Battles for the town were waged during the English Civil War, including an eighteen-day siege in 1644. In 1699 Liverpool was made a parish by Act of Parliament, that same year its first slave ship, Liverpool Merchant, set sail for Africa. As trade from the West Indies surpassed that of Ireland and Europe, and as the River Dee silted up, Liverpool began to grow. The first commercial wet dock was built in Liverpool in 1715.[10][11] Substantial profits from the slave trade helped the town to prosper and rapidly grow, although several prominent local men, including William Rathbone, William Roscoe and Edward Rushton, were at the forefront of the abolitionist movement.

In the early 19th century Liverpool played a major role in the Antarctic sealing industry, in recognition of which Liverpool Beach in the South Shetland Islands is named after the city.[12]

By the start of the 19th century, a large volume of trade was passing through Liverpool, and the construction of major buildings reflected this wealth. In 1830, Liverpool and Manchester became the first cities to have an intercity rail link, through the Liverpool and Manchester Railway. The population continued to rise rapidly, especially during the 1840s when Irish migrants began arriving by the hundreds of thousands as a result of the Great Famine. By 1851, approximately 25% of the city's population was Irish-born. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Liverpool was drawing immigrants from across Europe. This is evident from the diverse array of religious buildings located across the city, many of which are still in use today. The Deutsche Kirche Liverpool, Greek Orthodox Church of St Nicholas, Gustav Adolfus Kyrka and Princes Road Synagogue were all established in the 1800s to serve Liverpool's growing German, Greek, Nordic and Jewish communities respectively. One of Liverpool's oldest surviving churches, St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church, served the Polish community in its final years as a place of worship.

 
Inaugural journey of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway in 1830, the first ever commercial railway line.20th centuryThe Housing Act 1919 resulted in mass council housing building across Liverpool during the 1920s and 1930s. Thousands of families were rehoused from the inner-city to new suburban housing estates, based on the pretext that this would improve their standard of living, though this is largely subjective. A large number of private homes were also built during this era. The process continued after the Second World War, with many more new housing estates being built in suburban areas, while some of the older inner city areas were also redeveloped for new homes. The Great Depression of the early 1930s saw unemployment in the city peak at around 30%.

During the Second World War there were 80 air-raids on Merseyside, killing 2,500 people and causing damage to almost half the homes in the metropolitan area. Significant rebuilding followed the war, including massive housing estates and the Seaforth Dock, the largest dock project in Britain. Much of the immediate reconstruction of the city centre has been deeply unpopular, and was as flawed as much town planning renewal in the 1950s and 1960s – the portions of the city's heritage that survived German bombing could not withstand the efforts of urban renewal. Since 1952 Liverpool has been twinned with Cologne, Germany, a city which also experienced severe aerial bombing during the war.

 
Liverpool was the port of registry of the ill fated ocean liner, the RMS Titanic. The words Titanic, Liverpool could be seen on the stern of the ship that sank in April 1912 with the loss of 1,517 lives (including numerous Liverpudlians). A Memorial to the Engine Room Heroes of the Titanic is located on the city's waterfront.Like most British cities and industrialised towns, Liverpool became home to a significant number of Commonwealth immigrants after World War II, mostly settling in older inner city areas such as Toxteth. However, a significant West Indian black community had existed in the city as long ago as the first two decades of the 20th century.

In the 1960s Liverpool was the centre of the "Merseybeat" sound which became synonymous with The Beatles and fellow Liverpudlian rock bands.

From the mid-1970s onwards Liverpool's docks and traditional manufacturing industries went into sharp decline. The advent of containerisation meant that the city's docks became largely obsolete. By the early 1980s unemployment rates in Liverpool were once again among the highest in the UK,[13] standing at 17% by January 1982 – although this was just over half of the level of unemployment that was affecting the city in an economic downturn 50 years previously.[14]

In recent years, Liverpool's economy has recovered and has experienced growth rates higher than the national average since the mid-nineties.

 
Mathew Street is one of many tourist attractions related to The Beatles, and the location of Europe's largest annual free music festival.At the end of the 20th century Liverpool was concentrating on regeneration, a process which still continues today.

Previously part of Lancashire, and a county borough from 1889, Liverpool became in 1974 a metropolitan borough within the newly created metropolitan county of Merseyside.

21st centuryTo celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II in 2002, the conservation charity Plantlife organised a competition to choose county flowers; the sea-holly was Liverpool's final choice.

Capitalising on the popularity of 1960s rock groups, such as The Beatles, as well as the city's world-class art galleries, museums and landmarks, tourism has also become a significant factor in Liverpool's economy.

In 2004, property developer Grosvenor started the Paradise Project, a £920 m development centred on Paradise Street, which involved the most significant changes to Liverpool's city centre since the post-war reconstruction. Renamed 'Liverpool ONE', the centre opened in May 2008.

In 2007, the city celebrated the 800th anniversary of the foundation of the borough of Liverpool, for which a number of events were planned. Liverpool is a joint European Capital of Culture for 2008. The main celebrations, in September 2008, included La Princesse, a large mechanical spider which is 20 metres high and weighs 37 tonnes, and represents the "eight legs" of Liverpool: honour, history, music, the Mersey, the ports, governance, sunshine and culture. La Princesse roamed the streets of the city during the festivities, and concluded by entering the Queensway Tunnel.

Spearheaded by the multi-billion Liverpool ONE development, regeneration has continued on an unprecedented scale through to the start of the early 2010s in Liverpool. Some of the most significant regeneration projects to have taken place in the city include the new Commercial District, King's Dock, Mann Island, the Lime Street Gateway, the Baltic Triangle, RopeWalks and the Edge Lane Gateway. All projects could however soon be eclipsed by the Liverpool Waters scheme which if built will cost in the region of £5.5billion and be one of the largest megaprojects in the UK's history. Liverpool Waters is a mixed use development which will contain one of Europe's largest skyscraper clusters. The project received outline planning permission in 2012, despite fierce opposition from the likes of UNESCO who claim it will have a damaging effect on Liverpool's World Heritage status.

Second city of Empire
Lime Street, Liverpool, in the 1890s, St.George's Hall to the left, Great North Western Hotel to the right, Walker Art Gallery and Sessions House in the background. Statues of Prince Albert, Disraeli, Queen Victoria and Wellington's Column in the middle ground.For periods during the 19th century the wealth of Liverpool exceeded that of London itself,[15] and Liverpool's Custom House was the single largest contributor to the British Exchequer.[16] Liverpool's status can be judged from the fact that it was the only British city ever to have its own Whitehall office.[17]

The first United States consul anywhere in the world, James Maury, was appointed to Liverpool in 1790, and remained in office for 39 years.

As early as 1851 the city was described as "the New York of Europe"[18] and its buildings, constructed on a heroic, even megalomaniacal scale stand witness to the supreme confidence and ambition of the city at the turn of the 20th century.

Liverpool was also the site of the UK's first provincial airport, operating from 1930, and was the first UK airport to be renamed after an individual – John Lennon.

Elgar's Pomp and Circumstance March No.1, often seen as Britain's Imperial anthem, was dedicated by the composer to the Liverpool Orchestral Society and had its premiere in the city in October 1901.

During the Second World War, the critical strategic importance of Liverpool was recognised by both Hitler and Churchill, with the city suffering a blitz second only to London's,[19] and the pivotal Battle of the Atlantic being planned, fought and won from Liverpool.[20]

Inventions and innovations
The Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and its modern extension. The first such school in the worldRailways, transatlantic steamships, municipal trams,[21] electric trains[22] were all pioneered in Liverpool as modes of mass transit. In 1829 and 1836 the first railway tunnels in the world were constructed under Liverpool. From 1950–51, the world's first scheduled passenger helicopter service ran between Liverpool and Cardiff.[23]

The first School for the Blind,[24] Mechanics' Institute,[25] High School for Girls,[26][27] council house[28] and Juvenile Court[29] were all founded in Liverpool. The RSPCA,[30] NSPCC,[31] Age Concern,[32] Relate, Citizen's Advice Bureau[33] and Legal Aid all evolved from work in the city.

In the field of public health, the first lifeboat station, public baths and wash-houses,[34] sanitary act,[35] medical officer for health, district nurse, slum clearance,[36] purpose-built ambulance,[37] X-ray medical diagnosis,[38] school of tropical medicine, motorised municipal fire-engine,[39] free school milk and school meals,[40] cancer research centre,[41] and zoonosis research centre[42] all originated in Liverpool. The first British Nobel Prize was awarded in 1902 to Ronald Ross, professor at the School of Tropical Medicine, the first school of its kind in the world.[43] Orthopaedic surgery was pioneered in Liverpool by Hugh Owen Thomas,[44] and modern medical anaesthetics by Thomas Cecil Gray.

The world's first integrated sewer system was constructed in Liverpool by James Newlands, appointed the UK's first borough engineer in 1847.[45][46]

In finance, Liverpool founded the UK's first Underwriters' Association[47] and the first Institute of Accountants. The Western world's first financial derivatives (cotton futures) were traded on the Liverpool Cotton Exchange in the late 1700s.[48]

In the arts, Liverpool was home to the first lending library, athenaeum society, arts centre[49] and public art conservation centre.[50] Liverpool is also home to the UK's oldest surviving classical orchestra, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra,[51] as well as the oldest surviving repertory theatre, the Liverpool Playhouse.[52]

 
Oriel Chambers, the first 'modern' building in the worldIn 1864, Peter Ellis built the world's first iron-framed, curtain-walled office building, Oriel Chambers, the prototype of the skyscraper. The UK's first purpose-built department store was Compton House, completed in 1867 for the retailer J.R. Jeffrey;[53] it was the largest store in the world at the time.[54]

Between 1862 and 1867, Liverpool held an annual Grand Olympic Festival. Devised by John Hulley and Charles Melly, these games were the first to be wholly amateur in nature and international in outlook.[55][56] The programme of the first modern Olympiad in Athens in 1896 was almost identical to that of the Liverpool Olympics.[57] In 1865 Hulley co-founded the National Olympian Association in Liverpool, a forerunner of the British Olympic Association. Its articles of foundation provided the framework for the International Olympic Charter.

Shipowner Sir Alfred Lewis Jones introduced the banana to Great Britain in 1884.[58]

In 1889, borough engineer John Alexander Brodie invented the football goal-net, and was a pioneer in the use of pre-fabricated housing. He was also vice-president of the Liverpool Self-Propelled Traffic Association which was a precursor, and later a constituent member, of the Royal Automobile Club. Brodie oversaw the construction of the UK's first ring road, the UK's first intercity highway as well as the Queensway Tunnel, linking Liverpool and Birkenhead. Described as "the eighth wonder of the world", at the time of its construction it was the longest underwater tunnel in the world, a title it held for 24 years.

In 1897, the Lumière brothers filmed Liverpool,[59] including what is believed to be the world's first tracking shot,[60] taken from the Liverpool Overhead Railway – the world's first elevated electrified railway.

Liverpool inventor Frank Hornby was a visionary in toy development and manufacture and produced three of the most popular lines of toys in the 20th century: Meccano, Hornby Model Railways and Dinky Toys.

The British Interplanetary Society, founded in Liverpool in 1933 by Phillip Ellaby Cleator, is the world's oldest existing organisation devoted to the promotion of spaceflight, and its journal the longest running astronautical publication in the world.[61]

In 1999, Liverpool was the first city outside the capital to be awarded blue plaques by English Heritage in recognition of the "significant contribution made by its sons and daughters in all walks of life."[62]

GovernmentLiverpool has three tiers of government; the Mayor and Local Council, the National Government and the European Parliament. Liverpool is officially governed by a Unitary Authority, as when Merseyside County Council was disbanded civic functions were returned to a district borough level. However several services such as the Police and Fire and Rescue Service, continue to be run at a county-wide level.

Mayor and local councilSee also: Liverpool City Council
 
The late Georgian Liverpool Town Hall
A number of Liverpool City Council services are based in the Municipal BuildingsThe City of Liverpool is governed by the Directly elected mayor of Liverpool and Liverpool City Council, and is one of five metropolitan boroughs that combine to make up the metropolitan county of Merseyside. The Mayor is elected by the citizens of Liverpool every four years and is responsible for the day to day running of the council. The council's 90 elected councillors who represent local communities throughout the city, are responsible for scrutininsing the Mayor's decisions, setting the Budget, and policy framework of the city. The Mayor's responsibility is to be a powerful voice for the city both nationally and internationally, to lead, build investor confidence, and to direct resources to economic priorities.[63] The Mayor also exchanges direct dialogue with government ministers and the Prime minister through his seat at the 'Cabinet of Mayors'. Discussions include pressing decision makers in the government on local issues as well as building relationships with the other Directly elected mayors in England and Wales.[64] The mayor is Joe Anderson.

The city of Liverpool effectively has two Mayors. As well as the directly elected Mayor, there is the ceremonial 'Lord Mayor' (or civic Mayor) who is elected by the full city council at its annual general meeting in May, and stands for one year in office. The Lord Mayor acts as the 'first citizen' of Liverpool and is responsible for promoting the city, supporting local charities and community groups as well as representing the city at civic events.[65] The Lord Mayor is Councillor Frank Prendergast.[66]

For local elections the city is split into 30 local council wards,[67] which in alphabetical order are:

1.Allerton and Hunts Cross
2.Anfield
3.Belle Vale
4.Central
5.Childwall
6.Church
7.Clubmoor
8.County
9.Greenbank
10.Croxteth
11.Everton
12.Fazakerley
13.Greenbank
14.Kensington and Fairfield
15.Kirkdale
     16.Knotty Ash
17.Mossley Hill
18.Norris Green
19.Old Swan
20.Picton
21.Princes Park
22.Riverside
23.Speke-Garston
24.St Michaels
25.Tuebrook and Stoneycroft
26.Warbreck
27.Wavertree
28.West Derby
29.Woolton
30.Yew Tree
 

During the most recent local elections, held in May 2011, the Labour Party consolidated its control of Liverpool City Council, following on from regaining power for the first time in 12 years, during the previous elections in May 2010.[68] The Labour Party gained 11 seats during the election, taking their total to 62 seats, compared with the 22 held by the Liberal Democrats. Of the remaining seats the Liberal Party won three and the Green Party claimed two. The Conservative Party, one of the three major political parties in the UK had no representation on Liverpool City Council.[68][69]

In February 2008, Liverpool City Council was revealed to be the worst-performing council in the country, receiving just a one star rating (classified as inadequate). The main cause of the poor rating was attributed to the council's poor handling of tax-payer money, including the accumulation of a £20m shortfall on Capital of Culture funding.[70]

While Liverpool through most of the 19th and early 20th Century was a municipal stronghold of Toryism, support for the Conservative Party recently has been among the lowest in any part of Britain, particularly since the monetarist economic policies of prime minister Margaret Thatcher after her 1979 general election victory contributed to high unemployment in the city which did not begin to fall for many years.[71] Liverpool is one of the Labour Party's key strongholds; however the city has seen hard times under Labour governments as well, particularly in the Winter of Discontent (late 1978 and early 1979) when Liverpool suffered public sector strikes along with the rest of the United Kingdom but also suffered the particularly humiliating misfortune of having grave-diggers going on strike, leaving the dead unburied.[72]

Parliamentary constituencies and MPsSee also: List of Parliamentary constituencies on Merseyside
Liverpool has four parliamentary constituencies entirely within the city, through which members of parliament (MPs) are elected to represent the city in Westminster: Liverpool Riverside, Liverpool Walton, Liverpool Wavertree and Liverpool West Derby.[73] At the last general election, all were won by Labour with representation being from Louise Ellman, Steve Rotheram, Luciana Berger and Stephen Twigg respectively. Due to boundary changes prior to the 2010 election, the Liverpool Garston constituency was merged with most of Knowsley South to form the Garston and Halewood cross-boundary seat. At the most recent election this seat was won by Maria Eagle of the Labour Party.[74]

Geography
Satellite imagery showing Liverpool Bay, Liverpool and the wider Merseyside areaLiverpool has been described as having "the most splendid setting of any English city."[75] At  WikiMiniAtlas
53°24′0″N 2°59′0″W / 53.40000°N 2.98333°W / 53.40000; -2.98333 (53.4, −2.98), 176 miles (283 km) northwest of London, located on the Liverpool Bay of the Irish Sea the city of Liverpool is built across a ridge of sandstone hills rising up to a height of around 230 feet (70 m) above sea-level at Everton Hill, which represents the southern boundary of the West Lancashire Coastal Plain.

The Mersey Estuary separates Liverpool from the Wirral Peninsula. The boundaries of Liverpool are adjacent to Bootle, Crosby and Maghull in south Sefton to the north, and Kirkby, Huyton, Prescot and Halewood in Knowsley to the east.

ClimateLiverpool experiences a temperate maritime climate, like much of the British Isles, with relatively cool summers and mild winters. Historically, Bidston Observatory (actually located on the Wirral Peninsula) has provided the longest and most unbroken weather data for the Merseyside area. More recently, the Met Office has operated a weather station at Crosby.

The absolute minimum temperature recorded at Bidston was −12.8 °C (9.0 °F) during January 1881, typically the coldest night of the year should fall to −4.0 °C (24.8 °F) (1971–2000 average) However, the variability of the local climate was exposed as the weather station at Crosby fell to −17.6 °C (0.3 °F)[76] during December 2010.

The absolute maximum temperature recorded at Bidston was 34.5 °C (94.1 °F) in August 1990 – typically the warmest day of the year should reach 27.5 °C (81.5 °F) (1971–2000 average). The absolute maximum at Crosby is 33.5 °C (92.3 °F), recorded in July 2006.[77]

[show]Climate data for Bidston Observatory, elevation 7m, Temp averages 1976–2002, Rain and Sun averages 1971–2000, extremes 1867–2002
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 14.7
(58.5) 16.6
(61.9) 21.2
(70.2) 25.3
(77.5) 28.1
(82.6) 30.7
(87.3) 31.6
(88.9) 34.5
(94.1) 30.4
(86.7) 24.6
(76.3) 17.8
(64) 15.8
(60.4) 34.5
(94.1)
Average high °C (°F) 6.8
(44.2) 7.2
(45) 9.2
(48.6) 11.5
(52.7) 15.3
(59.5) 17.3
(63.1) 19.2
(66.6) 19.3
(66.7) 16.6
(61.9) 13.1
(55.6) 9.6
(49.3) 7.4
(45.3) 12.71
(54.87)
Average low °C (°F) 2.6
(36.7) 2.6
(36.7) 4.1
(39.4) 5.4
(41.7) 8.3
(46.9) 10.9
(51.6) 13.1
(55.6) 13.1
(55.6) 11.2
(52.2) 8.5
(47.3) 5.6
(42.1) 3.6
(38.5) 7.42
(45.36)
Record low °C (°F) −12.8
(9) −11.3
(11.7) −7.5
(18.5) −5
(23) 0.0
(32) 3.4
(38.1) 6.6
(43.9) 5.2
(41.4) 3.7
(38.7) −2.9
(26.8) −5.3
(22.5) −10.7
(12.7) −12.8
(9)
Precipitation mm (inches) 61.65
(2.4272) 48.91
(1.9256) 51.86
(2.0417) 43.86
(1.7268) 50.83
(2.0012) 63.07
(2.4831) 46.08
(1.8142) 59.25
(2.3327) 61.50
(2.4213) 60.58
(2.385) 60.34
(2.3756) 68.82
(2.7094) 684.37
(26.9437)
Mean monthly sunshine hours 56.0 70.3 105.1 154.2 207.0 191.5 197.0 175.2 132.7 97.3 65.8 46.8 1,499.1
Source: National Oceanography Centre[78]
[show]Climate data for Liverpool
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 13
(57) 15
(59) 17
(64) 26
(79) 27
(82) 32
(90) 32
(91) 33
(93) 27
(82) 23
(75) 16
(61) 15
(59) 33
(93)
Average high °C (°F) 6.6
(43.9) 6.6
(43.9) 9.4
(48.9) 11.6
(52.9) 15.5
(59.9) 17.7
(63.9) 20
(68) 19.4
(66.9) 16.6
(61.9) 12.7
(54.9) 9.4
(48.9) 7.7
(45.9) 12.7
(54.9)
Daily mean °C (°F) 5
(41) 4
(39) 7
(45) 8
(46) 12
(54) 14
(57) 17
(63) 16
(61) 14
(57) 11
(52) 7
(45) 6
(43) 10
(50)
Average low °C (°F) 2.2
(36) 2.2
(36) 3.3
(37.9) 4.4
(39.9) 7.2
(45) 10.5
(50.9) 12.7
(54.9) 12.2
(54) 10
(50) 7.2
(45) 4.4
(39.9) 3.3
(37.9) 6.6
(43.9)
Record low °C (°F) −10
(14) −7
(19) −6
(21) −2
(27) 0
(32) 0
(32) 7
(45) 5
(41) 0
(32) −2
(27) −5
(23) −13
(9) −13
(9)
Rainfall mm (inches) 97
(3.82) 94
(3.7) 101
(3.98) 85
(3.35) 68
(2.68) 71
(2.8) 40
(1.57) 55
(2.17) 44
(1.73) 61
(2.4) 78
(3.07) 65
(2.56) 859
(33.82)
Avg. precipitation days 18 15 17 16 15 16 14 15 15 17 18 18 194
Avg. snowy days 6 5 4 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 22
Mean monthly sunshine hours 62 56 124 150 186 210 186 155 129 93 60 31 1,442
Source: [79]
Rainfall:[80][81]
Sunshine:[82]

Green LiverpoolIn 2010 Liverpool City Council and the Primary Care Trust Commissioned The Mersey Forest to complete A Green Infrastructure Strategy for the City.[83]

DemographyMain article: Demography of Liverpool
 
Population of Liverpool, 1801–2001PopulationAt the 2011 UK Census the recorded population of Liverpool was 466,400.[4] Liverpool's population peaked in 1930s with 846,101 recorded in the 1931 census.[84] Since then the city has experienced negative population growth every decade, with at its peak over 100,000 people leaving the city between 1971 and 1981.[85] Between 2001 and 2006 it experienced the ninth largest percentage population loss of any UK unitary authority.[86] The "Liverpool city region", as defined by the Mersey Partnership, includes Wirral, Warrington, Flintshire, Chester and other areas, and has a population of around 2 million.[87] The European Spatial Planning Observation Network defines a Liverpool metropolitan area consisting of the Merseyside metropolitan county, the borough of Halton, Wigan in Greater Manchester, the city of Chester as well as number of towns in Lancashire and Cheshire including Ormskirk and Warrington.[88] Liverpool and Manchester are sometimes considered as one large polynuclear metropolitan area,[89][90][91] or megalopolis.[92]

In common with many cities, Liverpool's population is younger than that of England as a whole, with 42.3 per cent of its population under the age of 30, compared to an English average of 37.4 per cent.[93] 65.1 per cent of the population is of working age.[93]

Ethnicity
The ornamental gate to Chinatown, LiverpoolAs of June 2009, an estimated 91.0 per cent of Liverpool's population was White British, 3.0 per cent Asian or Asian British, 1.9 per cent Black or Black British, 2.0 per cent mixed-race and 2.1 per cent Chinese and other.[3]

Liverpool is home to Britain's oldest Black community, dating to at least the 1730s, and some Black Liverpudlians are able to trace their ancestors in the city back ten generations.[94] Early Black settlers in the city included seamen, the children of traders sent to be educated, and freed slaves, since slaves entering the country after 1722 were deemed free men.[95]

The city is also home to the oldest Chinese community in Europe; the first residents of the city's Chinatown arrived as seamen in the 19th century.[96] The gateway in Liverpool's Chinatown is also the largest gateway outside of China. The city is also known for its large Irish population and its historical Welsh population.[97] In 1813, 10 per cent of Liverpool's population was Welsh, leading to the city becoming known as "the capital of North Wales".[97] Following the start of the Great Irish Famine, two million Irish people migrated to Liverpool in the space of one decade, many of them subsequently departing for the United States.[98] By 1851, more than 20 per cent of the population of Liverpool was Irish.[99] At the 2001 Census, 1.17 per cent of the population were Welsh-born and 0.75 per cent were born in the Republic of Ireland, while 0.54 per cent were born in Northern Ireland,[100] but many more Liverpudlians are of Welsh or Irish ancestry. Liverpool is also noted for its large African-Caribbean,[101] Ghanaian,[102] Indian,[101] Latin American,[103] Malaysian,[104] Somali[105] and Yemeni.[106] communities which number several thousand each.

Religion
Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the KingThe thousands of migrants and sailors passing through Liverpool resulted in a religious diversity that is still apparent today. This is reflected in the equally diverse collection of religious buildings,[107] and two Christian cathedrals.

Christ Church, in Buckingham Road, Tuebrook, is a conservative evangelical congregation and is affiliated with the Evangelical Connexion.[108] They worship using the 1785 Prayer Book, and regard the Bible as the sole rule of faith and practice.

The parish church of Liverpool is the Anglican Our Lady and St Nicholas, colloquially known as "the sailors church", which has existed near the waterfront since 1257. It regularly plays host to Catholic masses. Other notable churches include the Greek Orthodox Church of St Nicholas (built in the Neo-Byzantine architecture style), and the Gustav Adolfus Kyrka (the Swedish Seamen's Church, reminiscent of Nordic styles).

Liverpool's wealth as a port city enabled the construction of two enormous cathedrals, both dating from the 20th century. The Anglican Cathedral, which was designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott and plays host to the annual Liverpool Shakespeare Festival, has one of the longest naves, largest organs and heaviest and highest peals of bells in the world. The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Cathedral, on Mount Pleasant next to Liverpool Science Park was initially planned to be even larger. Of Sir Edwin Lutyens' original design, only the crypt was completed. The cathedral was eventually built to a simpler design by Sir Frederick Gibberd; while this is on a smaller scale than Lutyens' original design, it still manages to incorporate the largest panel of stained glass in the world. The road running between the two cathedrals is called Hope Street, a coincidence which pleases believers. The cathedral is colloquially referred to as "Paddy's Wigwam" due to its shape.[109][110]

 
The Al-Rahma Mosque in the Toxteth area of LiverpoolLiverpool contains several synagogues, of which the Grade I listed Moorish Revival Princes Road Synagogue is architecturally the most notable. Princes Road is widely considered to be the most magnificent of Britain's Moorish Revival synagogues and one of the finest buildings in Liverpool.[111] Liverpool has a thriving Jewish community with a further two orthodox Synagogues, one in the Allerton district of the city and a second in the Childwall district of the city where a significant Jewish community reside. A third orthodox Synagogue in the Greenbank Park area of L17 has recently closed, and is a listed 1930s structure. There is also a Lubavitch Chabad House and a reform Synagogue. Liverpool has had a Jewish community since the mid-18th century. The Jewish population of Liverpool is around 5,000.[112]

Liverpool also has a Hindu community, with a Mandir on Edge Lane, Edge Hill. The Shri Radha Krishna Temple from the Hindu Cultural Organisation in Liverpool is based there.[113] Liverpool also has the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Wavertree[114] and a Bahá'í Centre in the same area.[115]

The city had the earliest mosque in England, and possibly the UK, founded in 1887 by William Abdullah Quilliam, a lawyer who had converted to Islam, and set up the Liverpool Muslim Institute in a terraced house on West Derby Road.[116] The building was used as a house of worship until 1908, when it was sold to the City Council and converted into offices.[117] Plans have been accepted to re-convert the building where the mosque once stood into a museum.[118] There are three mosques in Liverpool: the largest and main one, Al-Rahma mosque, in the Toxteth area of the city and a mosque recently opened in the Mossley Hill district of the city. The third mosque was also recently opened in Toxteth and is on Granby Street.

LGBT communityMain article: LGBT culture in Liverpool
Liverpool has a large lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender/transsexual population, as well as the UK's only official 'gay quarter'. Despite cities such as Manchester and Brighton being historically more noted for their LGBT communities, Liverpool now has an LGBT comparable per capita to that of San Francisco.

EconomyMain article: Economy of Liverpool
 
Apartment buildings within Liverpool's new commercial districtThe Economy of Liverpool is one of the largest within the United Kingdom, sitting at the centre of one of the two core economies within the North West of England.[119] In 2006, the city's GVA was £7,626 million, providing a per capita figure of £17,489, which was above the North West average.[120] After several decades of decline, Liverpool's economy has seen somewhat of a revival since the mid-1990s, with its GVA increasing 71.8% between 1995 and 2006 and employment increasing 12% between 1998 and 2006.[120]

In common with much of the rest of the UK today, Liverpool's economy is dominated by service sector industries, both public and private. In 2007, over 60% of all employment in the city was in the public administration, education, health, banking, finance and insurance sectors.[120] Over recent years there has also been significant growth in the knowledge economy of Liverpool with the establishment of the Liverpool Knowledge Quarter in sectors such as media and life sciences.[121] Liverpool's rich architectural base has also helped the city become the second most filmed city in the UK outside of London,[122] including doubling for Chicago, London, Moscow, New York, Paris and Rome.[123][124]

 
Liverpool One has helped move the city into the top five retail destinations in the UKAnother important component of Liverpool's economy are the tourism and leisure sectors. Liverpool is the 6th most visited city in the United Kingdom[125] and one of the 100 most visited cities in the world by international tourists.[126] In 2008, during the city's European Capital of Culture celebrations, overnight visitors brought £188m into the local economy,[125] while tourism as a whole is worth approximately £1.3bn a year to Liverpool.[124] The city's new cruise liner terminal, which is situated close to the Pier Head, also makes Liverpool one of the few places in the world where cruise ships are able to berth right in the centre of the city.[127] Other recent developments in Liverpool such as the Echo Arena and Liverpool One have made Liverpool an important leisure centre with the latter helping to lift Liverpool into the top five retail destinations in the UK.[128]

 
The Range Rover Evoque is manufactured at Jaguar Land Rover's plant at Halewood.Historically, the economy of Liverpool was centred around the city's port and manufacturing base, although today less than 10% of employment in the city are in these sectors.[120] Nonetheless the city remains one of the most important ports in the United Kingdom, handling over 32.2m tonnes of cargo in 2008.[129] It is also home to the UK headquarters of many shipping lines including Japanese firm NYK and Danish firm Maersk Line.[130][131] Future plans to redevelop the city's northern dock system, in a project known as Liverpool Waters, could see £5.5bn invested in the city over the next 50 years, creating 17,000 new jobs.[132]

Car-manufacturing also takes place in the city at the Halewood plant where the Jaguar X-Type and Land Rover Freelander models are assembled.

LandmarksMain articles: Architecture of Liverpool and Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City
See also: List of tallest buildings and structures in Liverpool and List of public art in Liverpool
 
Liverpool's Three Graces, the Royal Liver Building, Cunard Building and Port of Liverpool Building at the Pier HeadLiverpool's history means that there are a considerable variety of architectural styles found within the city, ranging from 16th century Tudor buildings to modern-day contemporary architecture.[133] The majority of buildings in the city date from the late-18th century onwards, the period during which the city grew into one of the foremost powers in the British Empire.[134] There are over 2,500 listed buildings in Liverpool, of which 27 are Grade I listed[135] and 85 are Grade II* listed.[136] The city also has a greater number of public sculptures than any other location in the United Kingdom aside from Westminster[137] and more Georgian houses than the city of Bath.[138] This richness of architecture has subsequently seen Liverpool described by English Heritage, as England's finest Victorian city.[139] The value of Liverpool's architecture and design was recognised in 2004, when several areas throughout the city were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Known as the Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City, the sites were added in recognition of the city's role in the development of international trade and docking technology.[140]

Waterfront and docks
The Albert Dock contains the UK's largest collection of Grade I listed buildings as well as being the most visited multi-use attraction outside LondonAs a major British port, the docks in Liverpool have historically been central to the city's development. Several major docking firsts have occurred in the city including the construction of the world's first enclosed wet dock (the Old Dock) in 1715 and the first ever hydraulic lifting cranes.[141] The best-known dock in Liverpool is the Albert Dock, which was constructed in 1846 and today comprises the largest single collection of Grade I listed buildings anywhere in Britain.[142] Built under the guidance of Jesse Hartley, it was considered to be one of the most advanced docks anywhere in the world upon completion and is often attributed with helping the city to become one of the most important ports in the world. The Albert Dock houses restaurants, bars, shops, two hotels as well as the Merseyside Maritime Museum, International Slavery Museum, Tate Liverpool and The Beatles Story. North of the city centre is Stanley Dock, home to the Stanley Dock Tobacco Warehouse, which was at the time of its construction in 1901, the world's largest building in terms of area[143] and today stands as the world's largest brick-work building.[144]

One of the most famous locations in Liverpool is the Pier Head, renowned for the trio of buildings – the Royal Liver Building, the Cunard Building and the Port of Liverpool Building – which sit upon it. Collectively referred to as the Three Graces, these buildings stand as a testament to the great wealth in the city during the late 19th and early 20th century. Built in a variety of architectural styles, they are recognised as being the symbol of Maritime Liverpool, and are regarded by many as contributing to one of the most impressive waterfronts in the world.[145][146][147][148]

 
Bluecoat Chambers, the oldest building in Liverpool city centreIn recent years, several areas along Liverpool's waterfront have undergone significant redevelopment. Amongst the notable recent developments are the construction of the Echo Arena Liverpool and BT Convention Centre on Kings Dock, Alexandra Tower and 1 Princes Dock on Princes Dock and Liverpool Marina around Coburg and Brunswick Docks.

Commercial District and Cultural Quarter
Victoria Street like many streets in the city centre is lined with dozens of listed buildingLiverpool's historic position as one of the most important trading ports in the world has meant that over time many grand buildings have been constructed in the city as headquarters for shipping firms, insurance companies, banks and other large firms. The great wealth this brought, then allowed for the development of grand civic buildings, which were designed to allow the local administrators to 'run the city with pride'.[149]

 
The neo-classical St George's HallThe commercial district is centred around the Castle Street, Dale Street and Old Hall Street areas of the city, with many of the area's roads still following their medieval layout. Having developed over a period of three centuries the area is regarded as one of the most important architectural locations in the city, as recognised by its inclusion in Liverpool's World Heritage site.[150] The oldest building in the area is the Grade I listed Liverpool Town Hall, which is located at the top of Castle Street and dates from 1754. Often regarded as the city's finest piece of Georgian architecture, the building is noted as one of the most extravagantly decorated civic buildings anywhere in Britain.[151][152] Also on Castle Street is the Grade I listed Bank of England Building, constructed between 1845 and 1848, as one of only three provincial branches of the national bank.[151] Amongst the other noted buildings in the area are the Tower Buildings, Albion House (the former White Star Line headquarters), the Municipal Buildings and Oriel Chambers,[153] which is considered to be one of the earliest Modernist style buildings ever built.[154]

The area around William Brown Street is referred to as the city's 'Cultural Quarter', owing to the presence of numerous civic buildings, including the William Brown Library, Walker Art Gallery, Picton Reading Rooms and World Museum Liverpool. The area is dominated by neo-classical architecture, of which the most prominent, St George's Hall,[155] is widely regarded as the best example of a neo-classical building anywhere in Europe.[156] A Grade I listed building, it was constructed between 1840 and 1855 to serve a variety of civic functions in the city and its doors are inscribed with "S.P.Q.L." (Latin senatus populusque Liverpudliensis), meaning "the senate and people of Liverpool". William Brown Street is also home to numerous public monuments and sculptures, including Wellington's Column and the Steble Fountain. Many others are located around the area, particularly in St John's Gardens, which was specifically developed for this purpose.[157] The William Brown Street area has been likened to a modern recreation of the Roman Forum.[158]

Other notable landmarks
Speke Hall Tudor manor house is one of Liverpool's oldest buildings
West Tower has been the city's tallest building since completion in 2008While the majority of Liverpool's architecture dates from the mid-18th century onwards, there are several buildings that pre-date this time. One of the oldest surviving buildings is Speke Hall, a Tudor manor house located in the south of the city, which was completed in 1598.[159] The building is one of the few remaining timber framed Tudor houses left in the north of England and is particularly noted for its Victorian interior, which was added in the mid-19th century.[160] In addition to Speke Hall, many of the city's other oldest surviving buildings are also former manor houses including Croxteth Hall and Woolton Hall, which were completed in 1702 and 1704 respectively.[161] The oldest building within the city centre is the Grade I listed Bluecoat Chambers,[162] which was built between 1717 and 1718. Constructed in British Queen Anne style,[163][164] the building was influenced in part by the work of Christopher Wren[165] and was originally the home of the Bluecoat School (who later moved to larger site in the south of the city). Since 1908 it has acted as a centre for arts in Liverpool.[163]

 
Liverpool Cathedral is regarded as one of the greatest buildings of the twentieth century and is one of the largest church buildings in the worldLiverpool is noted for having two Cathedrals, each of which imposes over the landscape around it.[166] The Anglican Cathedral, which was constructed between 1904 and 1978, is the largest Cathedral in Britain[167] and the fifth largest in the world. Designed and built in Gothic style, it is regarded as one of the greatest buildings to have been constructed during the 20th century[168] and was described by former British Poet Laureate, John Betjeman, as 'one of the great buildings of the world’.[169] The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Cathedral was constructed between 1962 and 1967 and is noted as one of the first Cathedrals to break the traditional longitudinal design.[170]

In recent years, many parts of Liverpool's city centre have undergone significant redevelopment and regeneration after years of decline. The largest of these developments has been Liverpool One, which has seen almost £1 billion invested in the redevelopment of 42 acres (170,000 m2) of land, providing new retail, commercial, residential and leisure space.[171] Around the north of the city centre several new skyscrapers have also been constructed including the RIBA award winning Unity Buildings and West Tower, which at 140m is Liverpool's tallest building. Many future redevelopment schemes are also planned including Central Village (planning permission granted),[172] the Lime Street gateway (work started)[173] and the highly ambitious Liverpool Waters (early planning stage).[174]

There are many other notable buildings in Liverpool, including the art deco former terminal building of Speke Airport, the University of Liverpool's Victoria Building, (which provided the inspiration for the term Red Brick University), and the Adelphi Hotel, which was in that past considered to be one of the finest hotels anywhere in the world.[175]

The English Heritage National Register of Historic Parks describes Merseyside's Victorian Parks as collectively the "most important in the country".[176] The city of Liverpool has ten listed parks and cemeteries, including three Grade II*, more than any other English city apart from London.[177]

TransportMain article: Transport in Liverpool
 
The Wallasey entrance to the Kingsway Tunnel. Liverpool's skyline is visible in the backgroundTransport in Liverpool is primarily centred around the city's road and rail networks, both of which are extensive and provide links across the United Kingdom. Liverpool has an extensive local public transport network, which is managed by the Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive, and includes buses, trains and ferries. Additionally, the city also has an international airport and a major port, both of which provides links to locations outside the country.

National and international travelRoad linksAs a major city, Liverpool has direct road links with many other areas within England. To the east, the M62 motorway connects Liverpool with Hull and along the route provides links to several large cities, including Manchester, Leeds and Bradford. The M62 also provides a connection to both the M6 motorway and M1 Motorway, providing indirect links to more distant areas including Birmingham, Sheffield, Preston, London and Nottingham.[178] To the west of the city, the Kingsway and Queensway Tunnels connect Liverpool with the Wirral Peninsula, providing links to both Birkenhead, and Wallasey. The A41 road, which begins in Birkenhead, also provides links to Cheshire and Shropshire and via the A55 road, North Wales.[179] To the south, Liverpool is connected to Widnes and Warrington via the A562 road and subsequently across the River Mersey to Runcorn, via the Silver Jubilee Bridge. Plans have been developed in recent years to construct a second bridge, known as the Mersey Gateway, across the river to alleviate congestion on the route today.

 
Liverpool Lime Street StationRail linksLiverpool is served by two separate rail networks. The local rail network is managed and run by Merseyrail and provides links throughout Merseyside and beyond (see Local Travel below), while the national network, which is managed by Network Rail, provides Liverpool with connections to major towns and cities across the England. The city's primary mainline station is Lime Street station, which acts as a terminus for several lines into the city. Train services from Lime Street provide connections to numerous destinations, including London (in 2 hours 8 minutes with Pendolino trains), Birmingham, Newcastle upon Tyne, Manchester, Preston, Leeds, Scarborough, Sheffield, Nottingham and Norwich. In the south of the city, Liverpool South Parkway provides a connection to the city's airport.

PortThe Port of Liverpool is one of Britain's largest ports, providing passenger ferry services across the Irish Sea to Belfast, Dublin and the Isle of Man. Services are provided by several companies, including the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company, P&O Ferries and Stena Line. In 2007, a new cruise terminal was opened in Liverpool, located alongside the Pier Head in the city centre.

Airport
Liverpool John Lennon Airport terminal buildingLiverpool John Lennon Airport, which is located in the south of the city, provides Liverpool with direct air connections across the United Kingdom and Europe. In 2008, the airport handled over 5.3 million passengers[180] and today offers services to 68 destinations,[181] including Berlin, Rome, Milan, Paris, Barcelona and Zürich. The airport is primarily served by low-cost airlines, notably Ryanair and Easyjet, although it does provide additional charter services in the summer.

Local travel
The Merseyrail network has extensive underground sections within the city centre. Liverpool Central is the UK's busiest underground station outside LondonBusesLocal bus services within and around Liverpool are managed by the Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive (more commonly known as Merseytravel)[182] and are run by several different companies, including Arriva and Stagecoach. The two principal termini for local buses are Queen Square Bus Station (located near Lime Street railway station) for services north and east of the city, and Liverpool One Bus Station formerly known as Paradise Street Bus Interchange (located near the Albert Dock) for services to the south and east. Cross-river services to the Wirral use roadside terminus points in Castle Street and Sir Thomas Street. A night bus service also operates on Saturdays providing services from the city centre across Liverpool and Merseyside.[183]

 
MV Royal Iris of the Mersey is one of three ferries that provide cross river services between Liverpool and the WirralTrainsLiverpool's local rail network is one of the busiest and most extensive in the country. The network consists of three lines: the Northern Line, which runs to Southport, Ormskirk, Kirkby and Hunts Cross; the Wirral Line, which runs through the Mersey Railway Tunnel and has branches to New Brighton, West Kirby, Chester and Ellesmere Port; and the City Line, which begins at Lime Street, providing links to St Helens, Wigan, Preston, Warrington and Manchester.

The network is predominantly electric, with diesel trains running on the City Line. The two lines operated by Merseyrail are the busiest British urban commuter networks outside London, covering 75 miles (121 km) of track, with an average of 100,000 passenger journeys per weekday.[184][185] Services are operated by the Merseyrail franchise and managed by the Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive. It should be noted that local services on the City Line are operated by Northern Rail rather than Merseyrail, although the line itself remains part of the Merseyrail network. Within the city centre the majority of the network is underground, with five city centre stations and over 6.5 miles (10.5 km) of tunnels.[184]

Mersey FerryThe cross river ferry service in Liverpool, known as the Mersey Ferry, is managed and operated by Merseytravel, with services operating between the Pier Head in Liverpool and both Woodside in Birkenhead and Seacombe in Wallasey. Services operate at intervals ranging from 20 minutes at peak times, to every hour during the middle of the day and during weekends.[186] Despite remaining an important transport link between the city and the Wirral Peninsula, the Mersey Ferry has become an increasingly popular tourist attraction within the city, with daytime River Explorer Cruises providing passengers with an historical overview of the River Mersey and surrounding areas.[187]

CultureAs with other large cities, Liverpool is an important cultural centre within the United Kingdom, incorporating music, performing arts, museums and art galleries, literature and nightlife amongst others. In 2008, the cultural heritage of the city was celebrated with the city holding the title of European Capital of Culture, during which time a wide range of cultural celebrations took place in the city, including Go Superlambananas! and La Princesse.

MusicMain articles: Music of Liverpool and Beat music
 
Liverpool was the birthplace of The Beatles
Philharmonic Hall, home of the Royal Liverpool PhilharmonicMain article: Culture of Liverpool
Liverpool is internationally known for music and is recognised by Guinness World Records as the World Capital City of Pop.[188] Musicians from the city have produced 56 number one singles, more than any other city in the world.[189][190] Both the most successful male band and girl group in global music history have contained Liverpudlian members. Liverpool is most famous as the birthplace of The Beatles and during the 1960s was at the forefront of the Beat Music movement, which would eventually lead to the British Invasion. Many notable musicians of the time originated in the city including Billy J Kramer, Cilla Black, Gerry and the Pacemakers and The Searchers. The influence of musicians from Liverpool, coupled with other cultural exploits of the time, such as the Liverpool poets, prompted American poet Allen Ginsberg to proclaim that the city was "the centre of consciousness of the human universe".[191] Other musicians from Liverpool include Billy Fury, A Flock of Seagulls, Echo and the Bunnymen, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Frankie Vaughan and more recently Ladytron, The Zutons, Atomic Kitten, Heidi Range and Rebecca Ferguson. Elvis Costello, whose mother is from Liverpool, moved to Birkenhead aged 17 and formed his first band.

The city is also home to the oldest surviving professional symphony orchestra in the UK, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, which is based in the Philharmonic Hall.[192] The chief conductor of the orchestra is Vasily Petrenko.[193] Sir Edward Elgar dedicated his famous Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1 to the Liverpool Orchestral Society, and the piece had its first performance in the city in 1901.[194] Among Liverpool's curiosities, the Austrian émigré Fritz Spiegl is notable. He not only became a world expert on the etymology of Scouse, but composed the music to Z-cars and the Radio 4 UK Theme.

The Mathew Street Festival is an annual street festival that is one of the most important musical events in Liverpool's calendar. It is Europe's largest free music event and takes place every August.[195] Other well established festivals in the city include Africa Oyé and Brazilica which are the UK's largest free African and Brazilian music festivals respectively.[196][197] The dance music festival Creamfields was established by the famous Liverpool-based Cream clubbing brand which started life as a weekly event at Nation nightclub. There are numerous music venues located across the city, however the Echo Arena is by far the largest. Opened in 2008 the 11,000-seat arena hosted the MTV Europe Music Awards the same year and since then has held host to world renowned acts such as Andrea Bocelli, Beyoncé, Elton John, Kanye West, Kasabian, The Killers, Lady Gaga, Oasis, Pink, Rihanna, UB40.

Visual arts
William Brown Street, also known as the Cultural Quarter is a World Heritage Site consisting of the World Museum, Central Library, Picton Reading Room and Walker Art GalleryLiverpool has more galleries and national museums than any other city in the United Kingdom apart from London.[198] National Museums Liverpool is the only English national collection based wholly outside London.[199] The Tate Liverpool gallery houses the modern art collection of the Tate in the North of England and was, until the opening of Tate Modern, the largest exhibition space dedicated to modern art in the United Kingdom. The FACT centre hosts touring multimedia exhibitions, while the Walker Art Gallery houses one of the most impressive permanent collections of Pre-Raphaelite art in the world.[200] Sudley House contains another major collection of pre-20th-century art.[201] Liverpool University's Victoria Building was re-opened as a public art gallery and museum to display the University's artwork and historical collections which include the largest display of art by Audubon outside the US.[202] A number of artists have also come from the city, including painter George Stubbs who was born in Liverpool in 1724.

The Liverpool Biennial festival of arts runs from mid-September to late November and comprises three main sections; the International, The Independents and New Contemporaries although fringe events are timed to coincide.[203] It was during the 2004 festival that Yoko Ono's work "My mother is beautiful" caused widespread public protest when photographs of a naked woman's pubic area were exhibited on the main shopping street.

 
Nelson Monument at Exchange Flags. The other British hero of the Napoleonic Wars is commemorated in Wellington's ColumnLiteratureFelicia Hemans (née Browne) was born in Dale Street, Liverpool, in 1793, although she later moved to Flintshire, in Wales. Her first collection of poetry was published in Liverpool when she was only 14 years old, catching the attention of no less a figure than Percy Bysshe Shelley.[204] Felicia was born in Liverpool, a granddaughter of the Venetian consul in that city. Her father's business soon brought the family to Denbighshire in North Wales, where she spent her youth. They made their home near Abergele and St. Asaph (Flintshire), and it is clear that she came to regard herself as Welsh by adoption, later referring to Wales as "Land of my childhood, my home and my dead". Her first poems, dedicated to the Prince of Wales, were published in Liverpool in 1808, when she was only fourteen, arousing the interest of no less a person than Percy Bysshe Shelley, who briefly corresponded with her.

A number of notable authors have visited Liverpool, including Daniel Defoe, Washington Irving, Thomas De Quincey, Herman Melville, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Charles Dickens, Gerard Manley Hopkins and Hugh Walpole. Daniel Defoe, after visiting the city, described it, as "one of the wonders of Britain in his "'Tour through England and Wales.[205] Herman Melville’s novel Redburn deals with the first seagoing voyage of 19 years old Wellingborough Redburn between New York and Liverpool in 1839. Largely autobiographical, the middle sections of the book are set in Liverpool and describe the young merchantman's wanderings, and his reflections.[204] Hawthorne was stationed in Liverpool as United States consul between 1853 and 1856.[206] Charles Dickens visited the city on numerous occasions to give public readings.[207] Hopkins served as priest at St Francis Xavier Church, Langdale St., Liverpool, between 1879 and 81.[208] Although he is not known to have ever visited Liverpool, Jung famously had a vivid dream of the city which he analysed in one of his works.[209]

Of all the poets who are connected with Liverpool, perhaps the greatest is Constantine P. Cavafy, a twentieth-century Greek cultural icon, although he was born in Alexandria. From a wealthy family, his father had business interests in Egypt, London and Liverpool. After his father's death, Cavafy's mother brought him in 1872 at the age of nine to Liverpool where he spent part of his childhood being educated. He lived first in Balmoral Road, then when the family firm crashed, he lived in poorer circumstances in Huskisson Street. After his father died in 1870, Cavafy and his family settled for a while in Liverpool. In 1876, his family faced financial problems due to the Long Depression of 1873, so, by 1877, they had to move back to Alexandria.[204]

Her Benny, a novel telling the tragic story of Liverpool street urchins in the 1870s, written by Methodist preacher Silas K. Hocking, was a best-seller and the first book to sell a million copies in the author's lifetime.[210] The prolific writer of adventure novels, Harold Edward Bindloss (1866–1945), was born in Liverpool.

The writer, docker and political activist George Garrett was born in Secombe, on the Wirral Peninsula in 1896 and was brought up in Liverpool's South end, around Park Road, the son of a fierce Liverpool–Irish Catholic mother and a staunch 'Orange' stevedore father. In the 1920s and 1930s his organisation within the Seamen's Vigilance Committees, unemployed demonstrations, and hunger marches from Liverpool became part of a wider cultural force. He spoke at reconciliation meetings in sectarian Liverpool, and helped found the Unity Theatre in the 1930s as part of the Popular Front against the rise of fascism, particularly its echoes in the Spanish Civil War. Garrett died in 1966.[211]

The novelist and playwright James Hanley (1897–1985) was born in Kirkdale, Liverpool, in 1897 (not Dublin, nor 1901 as he generally implied) to a working-class family.[212] Hanley grew up close to the docks and much of his early writing is about seamen. The Furys (1935) is first in a sequence of five loos

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