The British Journal of Sociology
Volume 51 No. 4 December 2000
pages 701-718
Abstract
This paper focuses upon the emergence of the night-time economy both materially and culturally as a powerful manifestation of post-industrial society. This emergence features two key processes: firstly a shift in economic development from the industrial to the post-industrial; secondly a significant orientation of urban governance involving a move away from the traditional managerial functions of local service provision, towards an entrepreneurial stance primarily focused on the facilitation of economic growth. Central to this new economic era is the identification and promotion of liminality. The State's apparent inability to control these new leisure zones constitutes the creation of an urban frontier that is governed by commercial imperatives.
Keywords: Night-time economy, post-industrial, governance, liminality
Dick Hobbs,
University of Durham
Stuart Lister
University of Durham/Keele University
Philip Hadfield
University of Durham
Simon Winlow
and
Steve Hall
University of Teesside