The “soft power” of shows such as Downton Abbey and Sherlock can help the UK bounce back globally from the shock of Brexit and help Britain remain a cultural international powerhouse, according to a former ambassador and foreign policy adviser to David Cameron.
Tom Fletcher, who briefed the former Tory leader in Downing Street on his first day as prime minister and was charged by him with promoting the creativity of “brand Britain”, said that he is “pretty confident” that “there will be a group set up specifically” to promote Britain and its creative industries around the world.
Fletcher, who is now chair of the Creative Industries Federation international advisory council, said that as it has become harder to use “hard power” such as the military in diplomacy, other tactics were coming to the fore. He said he realised how effective “soft power” could be when he was posted to the Lebanon and someone was berating him about British foreign policy but wearing a Liverpool FC T-shirt.
From then on he ensured he harnessed the creative sector with “big pictures of David Beckham, the monarchy, Sherlock or Downton Abbey” and booking bands such as Keane to appear: “More people in Lebanon know about Prince Harry … and Benedict Cumberbatch than they do about our foreign policy.”
His words come as it emerged from CIF and other sources that Brexit is already having an impact on the television sector and other creative industries.
Free movement of talent is one of the biggest concerns among media companies and the referendum result has already lead to one person declining to take up a post in a major arts organisation.
CIF chief executive John Kampfner said that on the day of the referendum result there was an “upsurge” in organisations wanting to join the federation and that it is compiling concerns to speak to the government soon.
Fletcher warned that despite, “the existential crisis around the referendum” he thinks “the most important thing as a country is not the result itself but the way we respond to it now. If the message goes out to Shanghai that suddenly we’re closed and we’re no longer this outward-looking nation that would do way more damage than the referendum itself could possibly do.”