85 records found in Sounds

Community researcher Lynda Dowling shares memories of Canning Town Old Library.

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Oral history interview with Tracey Reid.

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Canning Town Old Library

Oral history interview with Samuel Benson.

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Canning Town Old Library

Oral history interview with Franklin Amadi.

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Canning Town Old Library

Oral history interview with Geraldine Webb and Theresa McGinn.

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Canning Town Old Library

Oral history interview with Richard Fe Cados.

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An original EP by Project Sean.

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In summer 2025, I answered a call from Newham Heritage to join a team of community researchers on an oral history project focused on the Old Library at 103 Barking...

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In 1989, the Canning Town Public Hall was ruled structurally unsafe and for the first time in over a century as a community hub, the building lay disused and empty....

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Who were the communities of Community Links? In the life of the Canning Town Public Hall, times  have changed, and the world has changed with it. This development is reflected...

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Julien Ipanga is a young sculptor and artist, brought up in Canning Town and whose career began in Newham. Born in France in 1997, Julien’s family moved to Canning Town...

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Meet local musical legends Bill Farrow and Richie Milton also known as Bill ‘N’ Ricky Cockney Duo. Bill was born in the 1940s in Canning Town and Richie Milton in...

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Canning Town Old Library

Four oral history recordings by community researcher Natasha Cox.

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This image relates to the Mayflower Centre, a Christian organisation in Canning Town, which with the inspiration of David Webster and the Reverend Roger Sainsbury under the 1975 government Job...

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Local people recount how significant first hand experiences with animals and the outdoors at Newham City Farm were for education, training, building social and life skills and well-being on many...

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From 1965 to 2002, there was a small bird and animal enclosure known as “Plashet Zoo” within Plashet Park in Manor Park, Newham, near to the Passmore Edwards Building. The...

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The Friends of Newham City Farm evolved from the Friends of Plashet Zoo upon the closure of the Zoo. The group comprised a few members but significantly included the Patron,...

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Newham City Farm relied on a variety of volunteers as explained in the exhibition panel here. For many though, particularly the regular junior, youth, adult and SEND volunteers, there was...

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For many families, visiting Newham City Farm was not just an enjoyable day out but a necessity, a place to relax, destress, regulate emotionally and physically as well as for...

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Revolution Farm, based on George Orwell’s Animal Farm, is a site-specific play written by James Kenworth for performance at Newham City Farm in 2014.

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The Lesbians of Forest Gate is a new play derived from interviews with lesbian, queer, bisexual, asexual, transgender, and non-binary people living in Forest Gate over the past six decades....

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The Lesbians of Forest Gate is a new play derived from interviews with lesbian, queer, bisexual, asexual, transgender, and non-binary people living in Forest Gate over the past six decades....

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The Lesbians of Forest Gate is a new play derived from interviews with lesbian, queer, bisexual, asexual, transgender, and non-binary people living in Forest Gate over the past six decades....

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The Lesbians of Forest Gate is a new play derived from interviews with lesbian, queer, bisexual, asexual, transgender, and non-binary people living in Forest Gate over the past six decades....

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Reverend Ajennie Subaran has been a local to Forest Gate since 1992, serving at Emmanuel Parish Church on 208 Romford Road – just at the crossing to Upton Lane and...

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6 October 2025

Joan Lewis describes her memories of New Years Eve, combining her Scottish and East London traditions.

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A small memory of the Smog during the winters and the smell of Knights Soap Factory.

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Mixed memories of East London during Covid, enjoying the quiet city parks but reminiscent of the isolation for many older people.

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Describes working life at the Docks, and a friend who persevered through discrimination.

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Memories of parties and music during New Year’s Eve.

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This record sheds light on the wider legacy of Wenty’s Tropical Foods on Upton Lane and explores how culinary knowledge acts as a living link between generations, carrying family heritage...

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27 August 2025

Between Two Worlds delves into the personal and collective experiences of Srilankan Tamil migrants, capturing how their memories, identities and cultural heritage continue to shape Newham’s rich tapestry of multicultural...

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To celebrate Newham at 60, we trace the history of Wenty’s Tropical Foods – a grocery shop and Forest Gate institution. This post sheds special light on its founder, Wenworth...

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To celebrate Newham at 60, we trace the history of a Forest Gate institution and look at the legacy of its founder. Established in 1986, Wenty’s Tropical Foods on 26...

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28 July 2025

Kulwinder Singh Gill, a Punjabi Sikh, immigrated to the UK in 1981 to help his uncle run their family business, Bharat Food Store, located on the corner of Green Street...

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22 April 2024

Designing a nature reserve centre and new educational building in a space associated with a historic church was a visionary task. Arthur Watson, Project Officer, London Borough of Newham, recalls...

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May 2024

Dig into the past of Stratford Langthorne Abbey where monks once worked the land and memories are unearthed. In this project, Friends of Abbey Gardens and Historic England collaborate to...

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May 2024

The Black Lion pub in Plaistow has a long and illustrious past; the building has been here for 600 years, and was rebuilt in 1742. The history of the pub can...

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May 2024

By the time the sewers have made their way across London to Abbey Mills they are 40 feet below ground. The system uses gravity to move the waste water down...

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May 2024

When you find yourself walking or cycling on the Greenway, you are in fact making a journey along a giant sewer. This record looks at the history of the Northern...

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May 2024

Find out more about the Greenway Pollinator Trail, featuring over 6km of wildflower verges designed to improve the natural environment and biodiversity along the Greenway and beyond. The Greenway is...

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May 2024

Find out more about the Greenway Orchard, a project led and run by a small team of dedicated volunteers. Established in 2016 they are based on the Greenway by Newham...

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May 2024

Step into the soulful world of Bentley’s Nightclub, where music and memories unite a community. In this project, Rendezvous Projects and Newham Music collaborate to celebrate and preserve the rich...

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Odeon Cinema, Romford Road, Forest Gat

A look at the history of cinema going in Newham in the early 20th Century.

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1937

Judith Judith speaks to us about the development of Stratford sparked by London 2012, being underwhelmed by the opening ceremony but enjoying the achievements of Sir Mo Farah.

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2022

Cecilia speaks about the arrival of the Olympic torch into Newham, celebrating with her friends and family, and the impact of the games in Beckton.

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2022

As part of ‘Our Olympic Dream Lives On’, Shong speaks to us about watching Paralympic events, working in a local hospital during the games, and the impact that London 2012...

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2022

Chiufai speaks to us about his mixed emotions about the successful Olympic bid, his time as a volunteer and opening Newham up to the world.

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2022

Tom Lam speaks to us about the legacy of London 2012 as part of the project ‘Our Olympic Dream Lives On’, including the atmosphere in London in the lead up...

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May 2022

In the course of conducting research for their project ‘Who Wants To Be An Olympian?’, Pākiki Theatre met with and interviewed several local people connected with sport in Newham. It...

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This project explores what is was like to take part in the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic opening ceremonies via a series of interviews with individuals who danced, drummed, operated chimneys,...

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This interview shares the personal experience of Carpenters Road Estate resident Dolores John-Phillip, who was negatively impacted by the 2012 Olympic Games. Dolores along with fellow neighbours campaigned and fought...

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Sheriff Jammeh, or ‘Big C’, is a Gambian business owner and Co-Founder of Interface Gambia & Youth Club in Newham. His business ‘Interface Gambia and Youth Club’ works with young...

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April 2021

Across Seven Seas and Thirteen Rivers tells the life stories of Sylhetti settlers outlining the seafaring tradition from which they came. It seems likely that many of the Bengali speaking...

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April 2021

A memorial at Tower Hill, London, designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, commemorates the men and women of the merchant ships, including the crew of Persia, who died in both World...

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1915

Born in Newham, Jehu-cal Emmanuel Enemokwu is a young business owner who started and runs a successful luxury fashion and design brand, based in the borough. He was interviewed by...

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April 2021

Owned by Mike De Underground, his brother Cool Hand Flex, Uncle 22 and DJ Randall, it was an independent business which was pivotal in the development of the UK hardcore,...

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1991

Parrabbola Theatre Company explore the history of J.D McDougall’s: World renowned producers of stage fabrics, and Newham’s Best Kept Secret, who celebrate their centenary this year.

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April 2021

Anab Hoffmann quit the corporate world to start Healtogether CIC in Newham, a community-based organisation aimed at addressing the mental health needs of the Somali community in the UK ....

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April 2021

Hafza Yusuf is a British Somali textile designer and the Founder/CEO of Hafza Studio. Based in Bow Arts’ R.A.W Studio in Newham, her design studio also hosts community arts workshops. She was...

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8 April 2021

Patrick Ideh has been running the highly successful African meat retail and distribution business Bantuway, for over twenty years. He was interviewed, along with his wife Stella, by Louise Meiklejohn,...

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4 April 2021

Mani Kohli set up her first fashion store, Khubsoorat Collection in Plashet Grove, off Green Street in Newham in 1985 and later moved to her flagship store on 104 Green...

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PureJewels

Jayant Raniga comes from over nine generations of jewellery makers.  His Grandfather Bhanji Gokaldas and sons Ramnik, Dinesh and Harish established east London’s first Asian owned jewellery showroom and workshop...

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Neelams Hair and Beauty

Neelam Modi was one of the first people to establish a hair and beauty salon on Green street. Her successful salon, Neelams Hair and Beauty has been in Green street...

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SurgeRuth_GeeseCloseIsland

A composition by sound artist Stephen Shiell: hydrophones and microphones positioned under and over the water bringing you a mix of the Channelsea soundscape.

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21 June 2020
Surge Cooperative Floating Island

‘The Bend in the River is my Home‘ is a series of creative events and workshops, bringing Surge Cooperatives unique vision to others, combining the artistic and the environmental worlds with...

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21 June 2020

Eastside Community Heritage presents one of their early projects from 1999.  Green Street Lives aimed to record, preserve and document voices of people who had come to Newham and made...

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1999

One of Eastside Community Heritage first projects was a collection of oral histories and a publication about St Mary Magdalene, East Ham The publication, with a collection of stories from...

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1998

You can hear four dramatised stories from key locations and moments in Newham’s recent history; The Seaman’s Mission in Custom House, Bruner Works, Silvertown and The Old Spotted Dog all...

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June 2020
Mr Wan, Chan's restaurant

Peter Wan came to the UK in 1959 and worked in several Chinese restaurants, including the Chan’s Restaurant in Manor Park. In 1970 he took over the Chan’s Restaurant from...

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Newham Chinese Association

Mr Yau speaks about moving to the UK from Hong Kong and the problems he faced and about starting a family and setting up a takeaway business.  He later speaks...

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Bushra Nasir

Bushra Nasir became one of the UK’s first female Muslim Headteachers of a state secondary school in 1993 when she became head of Plashet School for Girls in Newham. Bushra...

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Iroko Theatre Company

Alex Oma-Pius tells us about IROKO Theatre Company which he set up in 1996 and how he found a home in Newham in 1997. Alex speaks about the talking drum...

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Tony Cheeseman, Newham Black Performing and Visual Arts Workshop.

Written by Harry Cumberbatch. Newham Black Performing and Visual Arts Workshop was set up in 1980 by Tony Cheeseman (1944-2009) and others to support the education, development and promotion of...

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Eric Samuel, CFE ©ExCeL London

Eric Samuel MBE talks to us about Community Food Enterprise (CFE), a social enterprise food business which established in 2002 to alleviate food poverty. By 2008, CFE had developed a network of...

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Comfort Okolo, Sickle cell

We talk to Comfort Okolo who worked at The Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Centre in Newham from when it was first formed in 1987. Comfort worked at the centre supporting...

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Orly Orbach - Shpresa_dancer 2

Shpresa supports and advocates for the large Albanian community in Newham. For Newham Heritage Month, Shpresa explores the heritage items many Albanians bought with them to the UK to both...

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Orly Orbach -Shpresa_Cot

A selection of traditional Albanian lullabies passed down to younger generations.

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May 2020
Ciftelia - Shpresa

Music is an important element of Albanian culture, and many people bought instruments with them to continue playing traditional music, passing on this heritage to younger generations.

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ShpresaLanguage

An exploration of the Albanian language, amongst one of the oldest in Europe, which is cherished amongst the Albanian community in Newham.

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28 November 2012

It’s over! A spontaneous celebration remembered by Iris, Joyce, Rita, Lou and Jean at Major Road Community Centre the women who have lived in Stratford all their lives and remember...

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Keith was born whilst his mother was evacuated to Oxford in 1941 but returned to live in Stratford for his whole life and remembers the excitement of children at the...

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Bernard Ball was born in 1935 in Forest Gate maternity hospital lived all his life in Forest Gate his brief memory of a bonfire that left lasting damage to the...

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Derek Calder lived all his life in St George’s Road just off Green Street born in 1921 but after spending 10 months in Aldersbrook Memorial Hospital in East Ham, Derek...

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Beryl Riches

Beryl Riches, was born during the Second World War whilst her mother was evacuated from Plaistow but returned to the area working at Selwyn Primary School for many years As...

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September 2025