Lucy Harrison: Mapping Your Manor » News Archive

Book and website launch

mappingyourmanor — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 12:20:32 +0000

Wonderful day yesterday, starting with a walk in the sunshine with a group of around 20 people testing out the audio while walking, followed by a get together at the Theatre Royal afterwards. Thanks to everyone who came! Above is Roy “Chopper” Reeve from the Eton Manor Association, testing out the audio in the Wick Woodland.

Oxtail with the Good Companions and Michael Needham

Lucy mappingyourmanor — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 10:05:17 +0000

A full day of recording with some of the Good Companions group, cooking Oxtail. Artist Michael Needham has been working with the group to develop the idea over the past few weeks. We recorded each stage of the process, from buying the meat, collecting herbs from the community garden and then the long cooking process in the pressure cooker. While it was cooking we chatted and recorded some stories.

Eton Manor Association

Lucy mappingyourmanor — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 10:01:44 +0000

photo by James Robertshaw

I organised a meeting of some of the Eton Manor Association with the secretary, Fred Spencer, and around 12 came along to the SCORE centre in Leyton to record some of their old songs for the podcast, including ‘Down on the Wilderness’ and ‘Dear Old Hackney Wick’. The oldest member was 88 and sang a solo at the end of the session. It was a wonderful afternoon and the members seemed very pleased to be recorded for posterity.

photo by James Robertshaw

Stratford festival

Lucy mappingyourmanor — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 16:50:14 +0000

Photograph by Daisy Hutchison

Spent the day recording people in Stratford from the inside of the Cultural Baton, an Airstream caravan kindly lent by Kent County Council. Recordings included the history of Hackney Speedway, East London Capoeira, as well as numerous other people’s memories of Stratford and Newham.

Hackney Marshman

Lucy mappingyourmanor — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 21:59:34 +0000

A belated post this one, as I realised I hadn’t mentioned the walk I went on with Gareth Rees, otherwise known as the Hackney Marshman, and his dog Hendrix, on August 2nd- http://www.marshmanchronicles.com/marshman/

Wonderful stuff!

Canal cycling

Lucy mappingyourmanor — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 21:20:39 +0000

Today I recorded Gary Williams, reading out his memories of cycling along the canal in Hackney Wick. He was prompted to write the piece after one of our walks with the Newham Striders.

After that I went to see Fred from the Eton Manor Association, to make the last plans for the big recording session on Monday… more details soon.

Chandos East

Lucy mappingyourmanor — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 22:26:20 +0000

More recordings today, this time with children at the shiny new Chandos East community centre between Leyton and Stratford. It was interesting how they talked about community and the importance of places like Chandos East, but they were obviously preoccupied by the riots that took place in London this week, and this kept coming back into the conversation.

The Yard Theatre

Lucy mappingyourmanor — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 22:22:34 +0000

I went to meet the cast and director of Imagine You Are Everyone, a new play that is on this week at The Yard theatre in Hackney Wick. The first night on Tuesday had to be cancelled, as people were worried about getting to the theatre on the day after the riots in London, and the whole play really related to the situation, as its subject is social media and ends with a kettled demonstration. It was quite an experience to see it this week. Thanks to the cast for being recorded and to those who stayed behind afterwards to be interviewed.

http://www.the-yard.co.uk/

Carpenters Estate recordings

Lucy mappingyourmanor — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 22:17:52 +0000

This week I made some recordings on the Carpenters Estate in Stratford. I interviewed Joan, who used to work in a sweet factory in Carpenters Road, and also in the Theatre Royal, and then met the very talented Rudeen, who writes poems on his mobile phone. We recorded one inside Londis on the estate.

I then went to watch some of the videos that were made a few years ago as part of the Home 2 Home / Carpenters Connect project, along with some of the other residents.

Hackney Wick recordings

Lucy mappingyourmanor — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 23:35:04 +0000

While people celebrated one year until the Olympic Games, Ross and I went recording in Hackney Wick, and got some great material, especially of printing presses, pumping stations, ice cream vans and crickets.