Journalism students show solidarity…by travelling to Amarillo!

Originally released in the early 70s by English musician and actor Tony Christie, (Is This The Way To) Amarillo has become nothing short of an iconic track in modern history.

Third Year BA Journalism students have come together to create their own music video for the tune, which features over 40 students and teaching staff from the course.

In recent years, many people may associate it with Peter Kay, who studied Media Performance at the University. After originally featuring on Kay’s show Phoenix Nights in 2002, he reissued the song in 2005 for a Comic Relief Sketch which went stratospheric and topped the UK Chart.

Students at the University, however, have shown that the song’s upbeat melody can spread positivity once again.

The idea came together after many students parted ways to live in isolation and wanted to work on a collaborative project with their friends. George Whitehouse has been the driving force behind the venture, which has taken hours of planning over several weeks.

George said: “I was brain storming ideas and thought it would be a nice idea to put together a video with as many people on the course as possible for a keep sake and perhaps a way of bringing each other together despite being apart. I pitched the idea to a few friends, and they were onboard, so I started arranging the whole course into groups and ringing people.

“Some took a little convincing and some were up for it immediately. For me it’s not about likes or views on social media I just thought it would be a nice thing for everyone to have and allow us to finish university with some fond memories of people that we’ve worked with and been close with since we started in 2017.”

Watch the Third Year Journalism students march their way to Amarillo.