Was it too ambitious or did Tyneside suffer from being odds-on favourite to win? Arts Editor Viv Hardwick asks what went wrong with our bid for Capital of Culture 2008.

DEFEAT in the European Capital of Culture bid for 2008 faces Tyneside with the loss of a prize rated as "a once in a lifetime opportunity" and investment running into billions.

This snub to the joint artistic ambitions of Newcastle and Gateshead will undoubtedly restore rivalries within the region with some greeting the verdict as an overdue wing-clipping exercise for the soaring ambition of the Angel of the North.

Those enjoying the wiping of the grin from Geordieland should reflect that millions of tourists are now set to use the overcrowded M6 rather than the M1/A1 access routes into the North-East. Some might even have stopped off in Sunderland.

After the obligatory congratulations are given to Liverpool, albeit through gritted teeth, the hard-working team behind the Newcastle-Gateshead bid must surely be reflecting on the British curse of being odds-on favourites to win. After all, early front-runner Belfast didn't even make the final six.

There must also be suspicions that Sir Jeremy Isaacs' judging panel would have been keen to avoid being dubbed Tony's Cronies by awarding the prize to a city in Mr Blair's New Labour backyard. The calls for an inquiry might have lasted longer than a Gerry And The Pacemakers farewell tour.

Even so, Mr Blair will have had the final word. And his endorsement for the land of Lennon and McCartney puts a tear in the corner of the "blinking eye" Millennium Bridge.

Did Newcastle-Gateshead's bid get a little ahead of itself? If the now-finished £48m Baltic Arts Factory and near-finished £60m Music Centre had still been pleading poverty in the planning stage, you suspect that Tyneside might have been seen as a much worthier cause.

The North-East is quite used to turning up its collar to the icy blast of indifference from London. The redevelopment of the Tyneside Quayside corridor goes on and the battle to halt the flow of young people away from the area will continue.

Neutrals will obviously wonder about the timing of southern snobby art critic Brian Sewell's cracks about "ignorant" North-East people being unable to appreciate major exhibitions.

It's common knowledge that some major recording artists and top shows still plan UK tours which skip from Sheffield/Leeds to Scotland and travel back down to Manchester/Liverpool.

As Europe's Capital of Culture, Newcastle would have been unavoidable in future.

As it is, Liverpool is walking on with hope in its heart and dreaming of attractions that don't cost Anfield prices and perform like Tranmere.