03/11/2025
Comedian Bill Bailey says the arts are undervalued despite their huge economic and societal impact. He will host the 2025 Sky Arts Awards on 16 September at The Roundhouse in London, celebrating achievements across music, visual arts, poetry, dance, film, and TV.
“For me, there are so many reasons why the arts are important,” Bailey tells Yahoo UK. “Even if you look at it purely from an economic perspective, the amount of money it brings into the economy… around £124 billion a year. The Premier League, by comparison, is worth about £7 billion. And yet the arts are still undervalued.”
Bailey highlighted the educational benefits, particularly for children: “There are all kinds of evidence to show that if you learn an instrument, or you learn music, then that will have a positive effect on other subjects. It teaches you life skills, determination, working with others… and yet it’s always seen as a kind of an extra.”
He praised Europe’s approach, contrasting it with the UK: “I’ve travelled around Europe, performed in theatres all over, and it’s striking the disparity in terms of the facilities, in terms of the way that the arts are considered in other countries. And I think that we have still got work to do here.”
Events like the Sky Arts Awards are important, he says, for highlighting the arts’ breadth and benefits: “It covers all of the arts… classical music, poetry, dance, visual arts, music, TV and film. It’s always healthy for people to see what’s happening in the world of the arts, not just in their field.”
Bailey has long championed traditional crafts through shows like Master Crafters, inspired by his family background. “There is a culture of making which goes back to the first humans… it’s under pressure, and it would be a terrible shame if these skills were lost. There should be ways for people to use these skills and even make careers out of them.”
He also expressed caution over AI in the arts: “It’s a big worry… but we should celebrate human creativity. AI can’t generate its own material; it just copies from humans. Let’s focus on what people are capable of.”
