Hitting The High Notes is town planning’s equivalent of Desert Island Discs. In these episodes Sam Stafford chats to preeminent figures in the planning and property sectors about the six planning permissions or projects that helped to shape them as professionals. And, so that we can get to know people a little better personally, for every permission or project Sam asks his guests for a piece of music that reminds them of that period of their career.

Unlike Desert Island Discs you will not hear any of that music during the episode because using commercially-licensed music without the copyright holders permission or a very expensive PRS licensing agreement could land Sam in hot water, so, when you have finished listening to this episode, you will have to make do with YouTube videos and a Spotify playlist, links to which you will find below.

Sam's guest for this episode of Hitting The High Notes is Pete Swift. After graduating in Landscape Design & Plant Science at Sheffield University, and spending some time in Japan, Pete (@peteswifysan) co-founded landscape and design practice Planit. Their conversation takes in the Liverpool International Garden Festival, Michael Douglas in Black Rain and Tom Hicks and George Gillett's tenure at Anfield.

Pete's song selections.

Absolute - Scritti Politti

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7Mk_JgesEM

Can’t be sure - The Sundays

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yARVs1ZNLjU

Unfinished Sympathy - Massive Attack

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWmrfgj0MZI

Hide and Seek - Imogen Heap

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYIAfiVGluk

Silver (Tidal Wave) - Echo and the Bunnymen 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmYB8VejrC8

The System only Dreams in Total Darkness - The National

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2O6duDDkhis

Pete's Spotify playlist

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3VTPF6fYR45eQhrXJUrwos?si=PgY_UlMITiyVGROEeY3Nrg__;!!CbnuSKVWDws!xq_Lry1gzPm_vSXH2qTUMwK0ui4WeiwCcGwaxdDkr8dJFnOU

Some accompanying reading

Planit

https://www.planit-ie.com/our-projects/

Festival gardens: The fascinating and controversial history behind one of Liverpool's beauty spots

https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/story-festival-gardens-wasteland-international-17133347

Why is there a Japanese Kyoto Garden in Holland Park?

https://londonist.com/london/great-outdoors/why-is-there-a-japanese-kyoto-garden-in-holland-park

Liverpool Waters

https://liverpoolwaters.co.uk/

What’s planned for Manchester Town Hall and Albert Square

https://secure.manchester.gov.uk/info/500354/our_town_hall/7297/our_town_hall_project_-_the_transformation/2

50 Shades T-Shirts!

If you have listened to Episode 45 of the 50 Shades of Planning Podcast you will have heard Clive Betts say that...

'In the Netherlands planning is seen as part of the solution. In the UK, too often, planning is seen as part of the problem'.

Sam said in reply that that would look good on a t-shirt and it does. Further details can be found here: http://samuelstafford.blogspot.com/2021/07/50-shades-of-planning-t-shirts.html