WHEREVER in the world your travels take you, reveal that you’re from Birmingham and talk will inevitably turn to two topics: Black Sabbath and Peaky Blinders. At a push, you might hear a mention of Cadbury’s or Spaghetti Junction. Maybe a hummed hint of ELO’s Mr Blue Sky.

Odds are, conversation won’t turn to the city’s Pre-Raphaelite paintings; to the forward thinkers who dared to dream of an Industrial Revolution; not even to the city’s architecture, other than a memory of Prince Charles dubbing the old brutalist library a ‘carbuncle’.

Because, although Birmingham has a long and distinguished history – a heritage that has, quite literally, shaped the world as we know it – as generations pass, it’s popular culture that trips off the tongue. Even those bits the city once preferred to sweep under the carpet, hairy heavy metal rockers and razor-capped street gangs among them.

A warm welcome then to a new movie-length documentary titled Birmingham: A City Rooted In Talent, a fascinating trawl through the conurbation’s creative canon. Put together by prolific local authors D.G. Torrens and Martin Tracey, it’s a timely reminder that the so-called Second City is anything but second when it comes to the arts.

“Birmingham’s legacy remains a continuous bubbling pot of creativity,” say the film-makers. “Lovingly known as ‘Brum’, Birmingham’s innovative tapestry is intricately woven through its historical landscape. This proud, working class, metropolis is deeply rooted in art, sports, literature, history, and industrial craftsmanship.

“At the core of Birmingham’s success are its spirited people. Birmingham’s influence has undeniably left its mark on a global scale. It will always be a city rooted in talent.”

Split into two parts, the first tracking Brum’s contribution to 20th Century popular music and beyond, and the second tracing the careers of city icons from the sporting arena, the comedy circuit and the arts world, the film offers three hours of nostalgic entertainment, insightful interviews, some surprises, and a serious message.

Birmingham is not to be overlooked.

Tony Iommi

From the opening notes of The Moody Blues glorious Go Now to film of present-day pretenders Blue Nation, the cast reads like a ‘Who’s Who’ of rock and pop. ELO star Bev Bevan’s here, Black Sabbath guitar hero Tony Iommi too.

There’s Joan Armatrading, Ruby Turner, Steel Pulse, Musical Youth, The Beat, UB40, Duran Duran, Steve Ajao, Basil Gabbidon and many more.

Fittingly, at this time of year, Roy Wood’s Wizzard and Slade rub shoulders with modern-day footage of Birmingham’s Frankfurt Christmas Market – the largest of its kind outside of Germany itself. How would the world soundtrack the season without I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday and Merry Xmas Everybody?

Maggie De Monde

Fast-forward a little and Boy George pops up to recall his time working in the city; there are fascinating memories of Dexy’s Midnight Runners, Fuzzbox, Fashion, the Au Pairs, Scarlet Fantastic – whose Maggie De Monde pops up regularly as both narrator and commentator – Sigue Sigue Sputnik and venues such as the Rum Runner and Holy City Zoo.

Familiar faces abound throughout: city historian Carl Chinn; TV presenters Sameena Ali-Khan and Nick Owen; Aston Villa’s Tony Morley and Gary Shaw, the latter filmed shortly before his sad passing in September 2024; Lioness Karen Carney; classic comics Tony Hancock and Jasper Carrott; Adrian Goldberg and Fred Dineage.

The documentary looks to the future, too, with author and film-maker Punam Farmah, writer-director Simon Cox of Invasion Planet Earth fame; The Nightingale Club’s Lawrence Barton, No 9 Gallery founder Lee Benson, and artist Jon Jones, the genius who painted the Peaky Blinders mural near Birmingham’s New Street Station.

There’s lots more to enjoy, showing how the city centre has changed from the days when Charles Dickens visited Birmingham Town Hall in 1853 to read his new book A Christmas Carol to a capacity cut-price audience after thousands queued for tickets. Historian Carl Chinn recalls a particular passage from the author’s The Pickwick Papers.

Carl Chinn

Describing Mr Pickwick and Sam Weller’s arrival in Brum, Dickens wrote: “As they rattled through the narrow thoroughfares leading to the heart of the turmoil, the sights and sounds of earnest occupation struck more forcibly on the senses. The streets were thronged with working people.

“The hum of labour resounded from every house; lights gleamed from the long casement windows in the attic storeys, and the whirl of wheels and noise of machinery shook the trembling walls.

Charles Dickens

“The fires, whose lurid, sullen light had been visible for miles, blazed fiercely up, in the great works and factories of the town. The din of hammers, the rushing of steam, and the dead heavy clanking of engines, was the harsh music which arose from every quarter.”

But while the cityscape may have changed, the big, beating heart of Britain has not, as many of those interviewed are quick to confirm.

Ruby Turner

“I’m a Brummie girl,” says soul queen Ruby Turner. “Birmingham for me is the place where I can be myself. My family are here. I can go out and be myself. It’s unpretentious; it’s great people. I’ve worked with some great people, toured the world, and travelled quite a lot but it’s a place to come home to. A place where I can be me.

“People see you in the street and say ‘Hi Rube! ‘And I can just get on with it. I’ve got shopping to do, just like them. You just get on with it.”

Sameena Ali-Khan

Central TV journalist and presenter Sameena Ali Khan agrees. “The people here are warm, they have a wicked sense of humour and everything is really understated,” she says. “Brummies don’t brag about what they can do and, if anything, you wonder if it will happen.

“But when the time comes, boy, do they deliver, and it’s always a cut above. That’s because Birmingham is brimming with talent. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens next because I know there is so much more to come. Big up Birmingham – we are amazing!”

Tina O’Neill

It’s a sentiment echoed by Fuzzbox drummer and sax player Tina O’Neill: “What I love about Birmingham is the diversity of the place. We are a complete mish-mash of different people, different cultures, different architecture, different everything.

“Over the years we’ve been unbelievably creative, and we’ve given rise to – we’ve given birth to – different genres and it’s always been underplayed. That’s because we don’t big ourselves up, we don’t shout about it. We’re very humble. But, in turn, I think that’s what makes us very special.”

Jasper Carrott

And how about this from Jasper Carrott? “I grew up to love the city of Birmingham. Birmingham has made me what I am today. I’ve had several awards from Birmingham, from the City of Birmingham, and they have meant more to me than any other award, including my OBE.” That’s a testimonial and a half.

Film-makers D.G and Martin say that they want to celebrate the city’s creativity, which is too often overlooked while the musical merits of Manchester, Liverpool and London are routinely shouted from the rooftops.

D.G. Torrens and Martin Tracey

“The documentary highlights the talent that’s emerged from Birmingham,” say the film-makers. “Like the city, this talent is diverse, but has rarely been showcased as a collective. We want to celebrate the array of creatives that includes musicians, comedians, footballers, actors, directors, authors and more.

“We really wanted to harness and showcase the talent of Birmingham to place it at the forefront of recognition. What we discovered was a selfless Brummie spirit that shone through all of the people who helped us to make the documentary.”

Birmingham: A City Rooted In Talent, from Contrary Trees Productions, is still undergoing final editing, including a tribute to the late Ozzy Osbourne, one of many featured in the archive clips who are sadly no longer with us.

It is hoped that a distribution deal currently being finalised will see the film debut on a streaming platform in the New Year.