Press release

Creative industries worth almost £10 million an hour to economy

New figures published today reveal that the UK’s Creative Industries are now worth £84.1 billion per year to the UK economy

From:
Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport and Ed Vaizey
Published
26 January 2016
This was published under the 2015 to 2016 Cameron Conservative government
Creativity is Great

Creativity is Great

  • UK’s Creative Industries grew by 8.9 per cent in 2014 - almost double UK economy as a whole
  • UK’s Creative Industries generate nearly £9.6million per hour
  • 2016 set to be another blockbuster year for UK’s music, film, video games, TV and publishing sectors

The UK’s creative industries are now worth a record £84.1 billion to the UK economy, figures published today reveal.

British films, music, video games, crafts and publishing are taking a lead role in driving the UK’s economic recovery, according to the latest Government statistics.

The figures show the sector growing at almost twice the rate of the wider UK economy - generating £9.6million per hour.

And this success is set to last, with a strong line-up of British talent and creativity in 2016 promising yet another blockbuster year ahead.

Minister for Culture Ed Vaizey said:

“The creative industries are one of the UK’s greatest success stories, with British musicians, artists, fashion brands and films immediately recognisable in nations across the globe. Growing at almost twice the rate of the wider economy and worth a staggering £84 billion a year, our Creative Industries are well and truly thriving and we are determined to ensure its continued growth and success.”

Government continues to create the right environment for creative industries to thrive, through tax reliefs, inward investment, and safeguarding music and cultural education programmes.

2016 is shaping up to be another great year right across the UK’s most dynamic sector; whether it be the next instalment of Poldark; the new album from Radiohead; the film adaptation of Roald Dahl’s The BFG; or the release of Lego Marvel’s Avengers.

Further information

Notes for editors

  1. The statistics can be downloaded here

  2. Expected highlights for 2016 include:

Film

  • The BFG (Walt Disney Pictures, DreamWorks Pictures) film adaptation of Roald Dahl’s classic directed by Stephen Spielberg. It’s due for release in June 2016.
  • Bridget Jones’s Baby (Miramax, Working Title Films, Three Strange Angels) The continued adventures of British publishing executive Bridget Jones as she enters her 40s.
  • Tolkein and Lewis (Attractive Films)- film based on the friendship and rivalry of two of Britain’s foremost fantasy writers.

TV

  • Games of Thrones - the sixth series of the fantasy drama television series will reach UK screens in April 2016 (HBO).
  • Peaky Blinders - third series of Birmingham based historical crime drama (Caryn Mandabach Productions and Tiger Aspect Productions).
  • Outlander - second season of historical time travel drama based on novels by Diana Gabaldon (Sony Pictures Television).
  • Poldark (Season 2) - TV drama set in late 18th Century Cornwall (Mammoth Screen).

Music

  • Daughter, ‘Not to Disappear’
  • Mystery Jets, ‘Curve of the Earth’
  • Elton John, ‘Wonderful, Crazy, Night’
  • The 1975, ‘I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware of It’
  • Birdy, ‘Beautiful Lies’
  • Radiohead, (title TBC)

Publishing

  • The Pier Falls by Mark Haddon - highly anticipated collection of short stories from the author of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
  • The Past by Tessa Hadley - Hadley noted as one of Britain’s finest contemporary novelists returns with a novel about family and the modern world.

Video Games

  • Lego Marvel’s Avengers (TT Games) - the best-selling videogame franchise returns with a new action-packed, Super Hero adventure.
  • No Man’s Sky (Hello Games) - adventure survival video game developed and published by the independent studio Hello Game.
  • Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerilla Games) - an action role-playing game set in the future 1000 years from now.

  1. Infographics (Flickr)

  2. More information on Creative Industries UK and the CreateUK Strategy

  3. Creative Industries Groups are as follows: Advertising and marketing Architecture Crafts Design: Product, Graphic and Fashion Design Film, TV, video, radio and photography IT, software and computer services Publishing Museums, Galleries and Libraries Music, performing and visual arts

Updates to this page

Published 26 January 2016