Taylor Swift fever has swept the UK week. She’s back in August and fans have been paying hundreds sometimes thousands to get their hands on seats through resale sites. It’s led us to think about the price and value of art and culture. St Thomas Aquinas came up with the ‘just price’ theory, that it is wrong to sell something for more than it is worth and charging more based on the need of the buyer is exploitative and sinful. Is that what is going on when punters are asked to stump up for a once in a lifetime experience?
In Latin the word pretium means both value and price, but the two are not interchangeable when it comes to the arts. How can you put a price on a potentially transcendent experience, or the life changing power of art? Is that what makes good art and is that what is worth paying for? Do live events culture have a value in itself aside from the economic impact? What does it mean for society when people are priced out? Should governments pick up the bill to make sure everyone has access to the arts. Or are they just an indulgence, a nice way to spend your leisure time but not something deserving of funds in comparison to global problems like poverty or malaria.

Presenter: Michael Buerk
Panel:
Inaya Folarin-Iman
James Orr
Professor Mona Siddiqui
Matthew Taylor

Witnesses:

Christopher Snowdon, Head of Lifestyle Economics at the IEA
Professor Mel Jordan, Professor of Art and the Public Sphere, Coventry University
Matt Reardon, Advisor at 80,000 Hours
Professor Paul Gough, Vice Chancellor of the Arts University Bournemouth

Presenter: Michael Buerk
Producer: Catherine Murray
Assistant Producer: Ruth Purser
Programme Co-ordinator Nancy Bennie & Pete Liggins
Editor: Tim Pemberton