Our Voices Oral History Podcast
Andy Clark gives an introduction to the Our Voices Podcast. He discusses what oral history is, along with his background in the field. He goes on to explore the Our Voices project and how we've responded and adapted the project due to COVID-19.
Meet the Oral Historian
Dr Andy Clark, Research Associate from the Oral History Collective, has been working with The Common Room since 2018 sharing his expertise and knowledge of industrial heritage and oral history. Throughout the project, Andy has been interviewing engineers, past and present, to delve into their individual experiences of industry across the region.
Andy says, "oral history is a crucial tool for understanding lived experiences of the North East. The interaction between events, historical change and individual memory is necessary for capturing the area’s past, and promoting opportunities for its future."
Our Voices Listening Booth
Thanks to The National Lottery Heritage Fund, The Common Room will be fitted out with an oral history listening booth, where members of the public can access the stories captured in the collection so far. The Our Voices listening booth will be available free of charge in July 2023.
Who Can Contribute?
The Our Voices project is collecting stories from across the region, themed around innovation and engineering.
So far, we have spoken to a range of diverse participants who have generously added their experiences to our growing collection. From retired engineers, to apprentices and ex-miners, we welcome a range of stories from different engineering and industrial disciplines. We are always looking to expand our collection and to celebrate our region’s industrial heritage.
We’d welcome interviews from:
- Mining Engineers
- Engineers covering a range of disciplines
- Engineers from diverse backgrounds which might be under-represented (e.g. LGBTQ+, diverse ethnicities, women)
- Apprentices
Transcribing the interviews
All of our oral history interviews are being transcribed as part of digitising our collections. This means that all of the audio interviews will also be available as downloadable pdfs, making them fully accessible and searchable.
Want to get involved?
We have a number of ways that you can get involved in the project, from being an interviewee to transcribing collected oral history interviews. Please get in touch to express your interest.