The 21st century, in the shape of the electronic wizardry of the BBC TV Big Screen, will be coming to Birmingham's Victoria Square however much the conservationists complain about civic vandalism. Of that, you can be certain.
The project, which will cost taxpayers about £360,000, is being championed by city council leader Mike Whitby, who for some strange reason regards the siting of a television set as a major policy issue.
His thinking, it is said, is shaped by the fact that shots of the crowds enjoying events such as New Year's Eve will be beamed across the country and feature as a backdrop the Council House, or the Wolf's Lair as we now call it.
One minor problem stands in the way of such a far-sighted proposal, in the shape of the troublesome Planning Committee which has refused permission for the screen to be placed on the side of a tasteful new wall outside the Halifax Building Society.
It will be interesting to see how the committee's split, seven votes to six against, can be turned around by the time of the next meeting. No doubt one or two members will experience an amazing volte-face and decide that non-stop broadcasting is not actually a noisy intrusion and a blot on the landscape in a conservation area just yards from the splendour of the Town Hall and Council House.
The Planning Committee is, of course, a quasi-judicial body, as its chairman David Roy never tires of reminding us. Decisions are not made beforehand and every item is judged on its merits.
You have to admire Roy's cheek in proposing 'temporary' planning permission for four years.
My money is on a compromise two-year period, which will be as good as permanent because once the screen is in place you can bet it will never come down.
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The race is on to find Birmingham's next Poet Laureate.
Here is Iron Angle's entry:
Birmingham's a global city, but with a local heart;
Makes you proud to bang the drum and play a tiny part.
There's a new station in the offing,
An iconic library too.
The Mailbox has Harvey Nicks, the Bullring Selfridges,
We've got designer shopping, untold wealth and riches.
Birmingham's a global city, but with a local heart;
Makes you proud to bang the drum and play a tiny part.
The council gets it in the neck 'cos things are never done,
No stadium, no casino and only Metro Line One.
There's dithering and U-turns galore,
When Whitby's on his hols.
No-one told the Lib Dems, James North's the man in charge;
Or said to Tilsley, don't you play it large.
But everything's OK now, we're having so much fun.
Birmingham's a global city, but with a local heart;
Makes you proud to bang the drum and play a tiny part.
The Chamber's still on-board, thank God, but Benussi's lost the plot;
Whitby's going to have her taken out and shot.
The Super Prix might return and, who knows, Crossroads too.
We've got to pull together, don't you rock the boat.
Nothing's ruled in or out, except a city mayor.
We don't want one of those,
And, of course, we'll never risk a vote.
Birmingham's a global city, but with a local heart;
Makes you proud to bang the drum and play a tiny part.