Birmingham Walk of Stars

The Birmingham Walk of Stars is a walk of fame-style installation on the pedestrian pavement of Broad Street in 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.

The Walk of Stars honours residents of the city who have made a significant contribution to the arts sector, in music, television, film, theatre, sport, business and literacy.

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.

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.^{[citation needed]}

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

Number	Recipient	Induction date	Profession	Comments	Location
1	Ozzy Osbourne	6 July 2007	Musician	Founding member of Black Sabbath and solo artist	52°28′40″N 1°54′40″W / 52.47786°N 1.91099°W / 52.47786; -1.91099 (Ozzy Osbourne)
2	Jasper Carrott	15 September 2007	Comedian	Comedian, actor and television presenter	52°28′31″N 1°54′51″W / 52.47539°N 1.91416°W / 52.47539; -1.91416 (Jasper Carrott)
3	Noddy Holder	9 December 2007	Musician	Member of Slade	52°28′37″N 1°54′43″W / 52.47706°N 1.91200°W / 52.47706; -1.91200 (Noddy Holder)
4	Murray Walker	28 June 2008	Sports commentator	BBC/ITV Formula One coverage	52°28′42″N 1°54′32″W / 52.47847°N 1.90880°W / 52.47847; -1.90880 (Murray Walker)
5	The Archers	12 September 2008	Soap opera	Long-running BBC Radio 4 serial	52°28′42″N 1°54′35″W / 52.47825°N 1.90978°W / 52.47825; -1.90978 (The Archers)
6	Norman Painting	12 September 2008	Actor	Voice of Phil Archer in The Archers	52°28′42″N 1°54′35″W / 52.47822°N 1.90985°W / 52.47822; -1.90985 (Norman Painting)
7	Tony Iommi	23 November 2008	Musician	Member of Black Sabbath	52°28′42″N 1°54′36″W / 52.47827°N 1.91012°W / 52.47827; -1.91012 (Tony Iommi)
8	Aston Villa F.C. 1982 Team	4 May 2009	Football team	1982 European Cup-winning team	52°28′41″N 1°54′38″W / 52.47810°N 1.91054°W / 52.47810; -1.91054 (Aston Villa F.C.)
9	Tony 'Bomber' Brown	17 May 2009	Footballer	Professional footballer from West Bromwich Albion F.C.	52°28′39″N 1°54′42″W / 52.47739°N 1.91158°W / 52.47739; -1.91158 (Tony Brown)
10	Frank Skinner	1 August 2009	Comedian	Co-Host of Fantasy Football League	52°28′38″N 1°54′41″W / 52.47727°N 1.91132°W / 52.47727; -1.91132 (Frank Skinner)
11	Gil Merrick	September 2009	Footballer	Professional footballer from Birmingham City F.C.	52°28′37″N 1°54′44″W / 52.47683°N 1.91230°W / 52.47683; -1.91230 (Gil Merrick)
12	Ray Graydon	September 2009	Footballer	Former manager of Walsall F.C.	52°28′43″N 1°54′32″W / 52.47848°N 1.90879°W / 52.47848; -1.90879 (Ray Graydon)
13	Julie Walters	27 October 2009	Actress/Comedian	Star of Educating Rita & Harry Potter Films	52°28′28″N 1°54′57″W / 52.47434°N 1.91575°W / 52.47434; -1.91575 (Julie Walters)
14	Gary Newbon	10 December 2009	Television journalism	Sports Reporter	52°28′42″N 1°54′32″W / 52.47845°N 1.90880°W / 52.47845; -1.90880 (Gary Newbon)
15	Lenny Henry	19 December 2009	Actor/Comedian	Presenter of Tiswas	52°28′43″N 1°54′32″W / 52.47849°N 1.90879°W / 52.47849; -1.90879 (Lenny Henry)
16	Beverley Knight	20 March 2010	Singer		52°28′42″N 1°54′32″W / 52.47846°N 1.90880°W / 52.47846; -1.90880 (Beverley Knight)
17	Joan Armatrading	4 May 2010	Singer		52°28′42″N 1°54′35″W / 52.47828°N 1.90970°W / 52.47828; -1.90970 (Joan Armatrading)
18	Chris Tarrant	August 2010	Broadcaster	Host of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?	52°28′42″N 1°54′33″W / 52.47841°N 1.90921°W / 52.47841; -1.90921 (Chris Tarrant)
19	Birmingham Royal Ballet	September 2010	Dance		52°28′42″N 1°54′34″W / 52.47844°N 1.90947°W / 52.47844; -1.90947 (Birmingham Royal Ballet)
20	David Bintley	September 2010	Dance		52°28′42″N 1°54′34″W / 52.47842°N 1.90955°W / 52.47842; -1.90955 (David Bintley)
21	Roy Wood	November 2010	Singer Musician	Member of Electric Light Orchestra and Wizzard and The Move	52°28′42″N 1°54′37″W / 52.47824°N 1.91024°W / 52.47824; -1.91024 (Roy Wood)
22	Bev Bevan	February 2011	Singer Drummer	Member of Electric Light Orchestra and The Move	52°28′41″N 1°54′36″W / 52.47817°N 1.91004°W / 52.47817; -1.91004 (Bev Bevan)
23	Matt Croucher GC	16 June 2011	Lance Corporal	Awarded the George Cross in 2008
24	Laurie Mansfield	16 June 2011	Theatrical agent	Represented Jim Davidson, Ken Dodd, Cannon & Ball, The Krankies, Tommy Steele, Eddie Large and Freddie Starr.^[7]
25	Sir Keith Porter	16 June 2011	Military Surgeon
26	Nigel Mansell	August 2011	Racing driver	1992 Formula One World Champion	52°28′41″N 1°54′37″W / 52.47810°N 1.91021°W / 52.47810; -1.91021 (Nigel Mansell)
27	Malkit Singh	May 2012	Musician	"King of Bhangra"^{[citation needed]}
28	Harry Moseley	August 2012	Fundraising/Charity
29	Jaki Graham	October 2012	Singer
30	Ellie Simmonds	December 2012	Paralympian	Multiple Gold Medal winning swimmer
31	David Harewood	July 2013	Actor	Actor famous for his role in Homeland
32	Jeff Lynne	March 2014	Singer/Composer/Musician	Member of Electric Light Orchestra and The Move
33	Trevor Francis	November 2014	Footballer	Professional footballer from Birmingham City F.C.
34	Ian Lavender	22 June 2015	Actor	Private Pike in Dad's Army
35	Dennis Amiss	11 February 2016	Cricket	Played for England and Warwickshire and was ECB Deputy chairman
36	Ann Haydon-Jones	11 February 2016	Tennis	First left-handed female Wimbledon winner
37	Steel Pulse	18 April 2016	Band	Members are: Ronald McQueen, Basil Gabbidon, Steve Nisbett, Selwyn Brown, David Hinds & Sidney Mills
38	Toyah Willcox	11 December 2016	Singer Actress
39	Don Maclean	11 December 2016	Comedian Actor
40	Geezer Butler	3 February 2018	Musician	Member of Black Sabbath
41	Jamelia	11 April 2018	Singer
42	UB40	27 May 2018	Band	Members included: Ali Campbell, Terence "Astro" Wilson, Duncan Campbell, Earl Falconer, Yomi Babayemi & Norman Hassan. UB40 songs included "Red Red Wine" and "Can't Help Falling in Love". As well as "I Got You Babe".
43	Black Sabbath	6 September 2018	Band	Members included: Geezer Butler, Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi & Bill Ward
44	Bill Ward	9 February 2019	Musician	Member of Black Sabbath
45	Carl Palmer	11 April 2019	Drummer	Drummer of The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, Supergroup Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Prog Rock of Asia & Founding member of Atomic Rooster.
46	John Lodge	11 April 2019	Musician/bass guitarist	Founding Member of The Moody Blues
47	Brian Lara	23 August 2019	Cricket	Scored well for Warwickshire County Cricket Club 1994 Team by Dermot Reeve, Keith Piper, Gladstone Small, Michael Bell and Tim Munton. That year they won the County Championship, the Sunday League and the Benson & Hedges Cup.
48	Steve Gibbons	6 November 2022	Guitarist/Musician	Singer-songwriter and bandleader, His music career spans more than 50 years.

Nominees

There used to be a Walk of Stars website listing other potential nominees on which the public are invited to vote. But this no longer exists. These include:

References

^ "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.
^ Carrott on Brummie Walk of Stars, BBC News, 15 September 2007. Retrieved 6 November 2007.
^ Walk of Stars is fenced off, Birmingham Mail, 26 October 2007. Retrieved 6 November 2007.
^ BBC Birmingham – Julie Walters
^ Greatrex, Jonny (18 April 2009). "Aston Villa legends take place on Walk of Stars". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 21 April 2009.
^ "We're all about football this summer!". Walk of Stars. Retrieved 26 March 2009. ^{[dead link‍]}
^ "Laurie Mansfield clients".

External links

[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

[villa82-5] 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. ^{[dead link‍]}

[7] "Laurie Mansfield clients".

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