Bloomsbury Festival podcasts and interviews

The audio for the moving site-specific piece where the performers take the audience from Fitzrovia Mural to the back of the British Museum.

An immersive audio that is simultaneously a dramatic guide through Bloomsbury, as well as the stream of thoughts of the three performer guides, helps to discover and piece together the body of a woman, represented through mannequin pieces. We attempt to trace a possible connection with Virginia Woolf, herself an avid streetwalker of London, while simultaneously exploring our own relationships with the cities we grew up in Kolkata, Lima and Wu Wei. As women artists, we examine the possibility of expressing a blooming, urban consciousness through the act of street-walking in London.

The piece explores how city spaces either objectify or invisibilize the female body. We invite the audience to join us in our quest: Can three performing artists from India, China and Peru, embody the memory of Virginia Woolf? Can they inherit the legacy of the Bloomsbury group? Experience our artistic response of walking through the streets, corners and squares of Bloomsbury.

We hear from Tamera Heron, a freelance writer and digital storyteller, as part of the Bloomsbury Festival's New Bloomsbury Set project and Nick Potter, Partner and Head of the Commercial Property at Bishop & Sewell tells us about Bishop & Sewell’s role supporting the festival.

PART 6: Women power back in the days! The journey of Frances Taylor, which was indeed to provide a ‘shining light’ to the poor and vulnerable of London, began in October 1868. She provided physical and spiritual support to many poor by founding a Religious Congregation of Sisters, the Poor Servants of the Mother of God. With no solid income, relying on finance from her literary works, as an adept author, and editor of fiction, non-fiction and journalism, she initiated a social impact on the lives of the dwellers in the great slums of the Seven Dials and nearby St Giles Rookeries. Follow her journey in this guided walk.

PART 5: Women power back in the days! The journey of Frances Taylor, which was indeed to provide a ‘shining light’ to the poor and vulnerable of London, began in October 1868. She provided physical and spiritual support to many poor by founding a Religious Congregation of Sisters, the Poor Servants of the Mother of God. With no solid income, relying on finance from her literary works, as an adept author, and editor of fiction, non-fiction and journalism, she initiated a social impact on the lives of the dwellers in the great slums of the Seven Dials and nearby St Giles Rookeries. Follow her journey in this guided walk.

PART 4: Women power back in the days! The journey of Frances Taylor, which was indeed to provide a ‘shining light’ to the poor and vulnerable of London, began in October 1868. She provided physical and spiritual support to many poor by founding a Religious Congregation of Sisters, the Poor Servants of the Mother of God. With no solid income, relying on finance from her literary works, as an adept author, and editor of fiction, non-fiction and journalism, she initiated a social impact on the lives of the dwellers in the great slums of the Seven Dials and nearby St Giles Rookeries. Follow her journey in this guided walk.

PART 3: Women power back in the days! The journey of Frances Taylor, which was indeed to provide a ‘shining light’ to the poor and vulnerable of London, began in October 1868. She provided physical and spiritual support to many poor by founding a Religious Congregation of Sisters, the Poor Servants of the Mother of God. With no solid income, relying on finance from her literary works, as an adept author, and editor of fiction, non-fiction and journalism, she initiated a social impact on the lives of the dwellers in the great slums of the Seven Dials and nearby St Giles Rookeries. Follow her journey in this guided walk.

PART 2: Women power back in the days! The journey of Frances Taylor, which was indeed to provide a ‘shining light’ to the poor and vulnerable of London, began in October 1868. She provided physical and spiritual support to many poor by founding a Religious Congregation of Sisters, the Poor Servants of the Mother of God. With no solid income, relying on finance from her literary works, as an adept author, and editor of fiction, non-fiction and journalism, she initiated a social impact on the lives of the dwellers in the great slums of the Seven Dials and nearby St Giles Rookeries. Follow her journey in this guided walk.

PART 1: Women power back in the days! The journey of Frances Taylor, which was indeed to provide a ‘shining light’ to the poor and vulnerable of London, began in October 1868. She provided physical and spiritual support to many poor by founding a Religious Congregation of Sisters, the Poor Servants of the Mother of God. With no solid income, relying on finance from her literary works, as an adept author, and editor of fiction, non-fiction and journalism, she initiated a social impact on the lives of the dwellers in the great slums of the Seven Dials and nearby St Giles Rookeries. Follow her journey in this guided walk.

Vivien Ellis is a singer, community choir leader, music researcher & trainer who uses the power of singing to connect, support wellbeing & feed imagination.

A conversation with Ifrah Ahmed, Somali youth worker, KCBNA about the walk of community painted silks made by local groups with arts organisation Kinetika.

A Bloomsbury Festival chat to Luke Olsen, Programme Director of MEng Engineering and Architectural Design at The Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL at the launch of Bloomsbury Festival 2023.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to producer, John Offord about his work at this year’s Bloomsbury Festival. 

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Soprano Charlotte Jane Kennedy and pianist Frasier Hickland who will perform a song recital based on the growth of the Earth between seasons at the Bloomsbury Festival. This programme will explore songs inspired by the elements of nature, as well as religion and mythology.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to an Award-winning poet and playwright Inua Ellams, born to a Muslim father and a Christian mother in what is now considered to be Boko Haram territory, left Nigeria for England in 1996 aged 12. Littered with poems, stories and anecdotes, Inua tells his ridiculous, fantastic, poignant immigrant-story of escaping fundamentalist Islam, finding friendship in Dublin, performing solo at the National Theatre, and drinking wine with the Queen of England, all the while without a country to belong to or a place to call home.

This performance is presented in association with the School of Advanced Study at the University of London, where Inua is a Practitioner in Residence, and Choose Love, an organisation that supports refugees and displaced people all over the world. Proceeds from this event will go towards Choose Love’s vital work supporting refugees, including those here in the UK.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Dr Rebecca Gordon about two talks coming up at the Bloomsbury Festival - how healthy growth can be encouraged in specific populations and why education matters for growth. 

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Alec Forshaw about an upcoming talk he is giving on the growth of Bloomsbury. This richly illustrated talk will cover the development of Bloomsbury over the last 500 years, from when it was fields and market gardens supplying the City of London, to the present day. It will include the first developments in the 17th century by major landowners such as the Rugby, Harpur, Curzon and Southampton estates, the major growth in the 18th century, led by the Dukes of Bedford, the changing nature and status of the area in the 19th century with the departure of the gentry and the arrival of major institutions such as the British Museum, University of London and various hospitals, the upheavals of the 20th century, and the continued flourishing of Bloomsbury in the 21st century as one of London’s most important educational, medical and cultural quarters.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Donald MacKenzie, the world renowned organist from the Odeon Leicester Square about ‘The Bloomsbury Beast’, the pipe organ of Bloomsbury Central Baptist Church, one of the most impressive and unique pipe organs in London.

Writer & Historian, Nino Strachey shines new light on the history of the Bloomsbury Group in the 1920s, revealing a second generation of queer young creatives whose accepting attitudes and freedom of expression were unprecedented in their time. The lives and stories of these young people provide context and perspective into our modern world, where queer people are still fighting for respect and recognition.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Lisa Azarmi about An Apothecary of Art, founder of social media sensation Ravenous Butterflies.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to musician, Aida Lahlou 

Embark on a journey of mystery and discovery. There is music from Central Asia, South America, North America, Scotland, Spain, and more. Music that harks back to ancient times and traditions, and music that brings us back to the present. Music that shows the versatility of the piano as an instrument through different sound worlds and musical traditions.

In this recital, Aïda uses a lesser-known repertoire to tell the story of Ravel’s Miroirs in a new way. Using intertextual links between adjacent pieces in the programme, new meanings are suggested, and a narrative thread emerges that weaves all the pieces together.

Presented by Bloomsbury Festival as part of the New Wave programme, a platform for emerging talent.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Marianne Nichols about the hidden history of the Foundling Hospital. In a quiet corner of Bloomsbury, the Foundling Hospital stood there for 200 years. The hospital was an early social experiment to rescue ‘foundlings’ from poverty and death on the streets of Georgian London, and it attracted eminent benefactors and raised thousands of children. But life for the foundlings was not so kind.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to writer Rez Kabir about “The Two Headed Bird”, presented by Tamarind theatre company who presents theatre storytelling for the whole family, with puppetry, music, song and dance.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Paul Salt & Kat Haylett about Young Voices - a showcase of short films by young filmmakers exploring the theme of ‘Growth’. These works capture moments in lives of the filmmakers, as they grow as people, or as the environment shifts and changes around them, often in unpredictable ways. The essay films question our relationship to science, royalty, popular culture, even the transport links connecting us. These films urge us to consider how the city of London itself affects the personal and societal growth of each of its residents and visitors. 

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Rowenna Mortimer about “The Morphea”. Morphea’s home is the canal, but her peace is being disturbed...

Presented by Bloomsbury Festival as part of the New Wave programme, a platform for emerging talent.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Ana Bursac about the piano works of Serbian Contemporary Composers

Bloomsbury Radio chat to actor, Theo Hristov (and the production team) about Petrichor, a radio play that aired on Bloomsbury Radio. 

Stella and Alex storm into each other’s lives one summer night at a warehouse rave in Peckham. They’re both seventeen and from London. But that’s where the similarities end. And tonight’s different. Tonight there’s a vote. Tonight history’s being written around them. And history has other plans.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to musicians Lorena Cantó and Yvain Calvo.

Composers have long been inspired by the beauty of nature, and this can be seen in the works of many great composers throughout history.

The music of Frank Bridge and Benjamin Britten shows an intense love for nature, evident in their compositions’ stylistic and melodic structures. This love for nature has its roots in earlier British music, such as the songs of John Dowland, which feature pastoral and bucolic motifs that invite reflection on the symbolism found in the natural world. During the First World War, this love for nature took on a new significance and many composers used their music as a means of reflecting on the destruction wrought by the war, exploring themes of loss, grief, and the struggle for hope and renewal.

The music from Dowland, Bridge and Britten show a deepening sense of humanity’s interconnectedness with the natural world, and how that relationship affects the way we see our lives and the societies we build. The programme will include an original silent film created by Radu Rojas to accompany Bridge’s cello sonata.

Duo Fabulae is a viola and piano duo formed by Guildhall School of Music & Drama alumni Lorena Cantó and Yvain Calvo.

A project kindly supported by the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to French soprano, Clara Barbier-Serrano and Robert Finegan (saxophone) about her upcoming event “Paris Chapters”. This project is centred around new music based on works by Irish writers who lived in Paris (James Joyce, Samuel Beckett, Oscar Wilde, W.B Yeats etc.) for voice, saxophone, and piano. Irish saxophonist Robert Finegan and French singer Clara Barbier-Serrano explore the possibilities of contemporary music and the idea of having a programme that can be relatable and flexible to suit different audiences and spaces. 2022 marked 100 years since the publication of James Joyce’s ‘Ulysses’ in Paris, making it the ideal time to launch the project and shine a light on this theme. This publication was also a clear indicator of the growing links between Ireland and France, both culturally and artistically. The new music becomes a part of the larger programme that shows the connections between Ireland and France. This includes solo and chamber music reflecting the life of these authors in Paris and the songs they would have heard, been inspired by, or wished to hear. For example, Traditional Irish songs, French classical music and the chanson/jazz scene of Paris. The programme will also include short readings from works by these authors, showing the growth of the authors as they depart their homeland and submerge themselves in the bustling city of Paris.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Dr Francisco Diego about “Paradise Planet Earth: A cosmic miracle under threat”.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Nicola Parry from the London Welsh Centre. The Annual Emporium at the London Welsh Centre is back, celebrating Welsh culture and creativity. This year’s event features a captivating range of products from London Welsh traders, artisans from Wales, and the local Camden community. The marketplace showcases handcrafted creations, from contemporary artworks to stunning jewellery and delectable culinary delights, embodying Welsh artistry and local talent. Visitors can immerse themselves in the world of Welsh arts and crafts while enjoying traditional food and drinks. The Emporium also serves as a vibrant platform for cultural exchange and community engagement, offering live music performances with choir melodies. This gathering highlights the strong connections between the Welsh community, traders from London, and the local Camden community, fostering unity and pride through collaboration and shared creativity. Don’t miss this exceptional opportunity to experience the rich culture of Wales and local Camden artistry, savouring delightful culinary treats and engaging in cultural exchange. The Annual Emporium at the London Welsh Centre promises an unforgettable event celebrating the diverse talents of London Welsh traders, artisans from Wales, and the vibrant local community of Camden.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Karen Wong (flute) & Lance Mok (piano) about an upcoming varied programme of contemporary music for flute and piano featuring works from underrepresented and contemporary composers. The wide range of music showcases the development in flute playing techniques, as well as highlighting themes of equality, inclusiveness and our relationship with the natural world.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to UK Tango Championship finalists Emma Lucia Reyes (UK) and Carlos Cisneros (Argentina) who will breathe new life into Piazzolla’s Histoire du Tango, reimagining his iconic arrangement with a performance of live dance and audio-visual effects re-telling the story of tango for a contemporary audience. 

Bloomsbury Radio chat to young trainees working on the New Bloomsbury Set, an arts and heritage project run by Bloomsbury Festival and supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. The project brings together local community groups, residents, and artists in Bloomsbury to create a series of exhibitions and events that explore Bloomsbury’s diverse history, identity, and cultures past and present.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Elena Paolini about Bloomsbury’s Women Medical Pioneers 

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Dance Movement Psychotherapist, Noel Datta about one of India’s most loved Bollywood icons, Meena Kumari and an upcoming performance “The Life of Meena Kumari, Bollywood star”.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Alisa Oleva about Rap Reflections with Wanda Canton coming up at the Bloomsbury Festival. Hate it or love it, rap music tends to make us feel a certain way. Since its origins it has been conflated with gangs and violence for some, but for others is a powerful and political form of expression. Wanda Canton argues that the way we listen to rap music is important for society more widely and can help facilitate crucial conversations. Sometimes words are not enough to express how we feel or what we are experiencing. Playing with rhythm, sound and body language can support us to broaden our expression, to find ways of listening to others and being heard. In an over-simulating world, paying attention to sound can help to quieten the noise around us by making some ourselves. This interactive workshop aims to create an experimental space to practice creative writing and sound exercises. Using both individual and group work, we will explore how language and sound can empower us and perhaps find moments of connection with, or compassion for others. We will consider how to command our language to be creative in a comfortable way.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Giuseppe Mario Urso about ‘A Room of one’s own’ - an intimate video installation by local artist Giuseppe Mario Urso. The work intertwines space and emotion to create a private place where you can observe St Pancras Church and its surroundings from a different point of view. An immersive video experience that turns an enclosed space into a ‘bird hide’ which then reveals the outside world to the watchers. Inspired by the concept of “liminal space” developed by the anthropologist Arnold van Gennep, the installation functions as an unconventional device to unlock all the restraints accumulated during the lockdown. A liminal space is a transitional place between spaces – a now between before and after.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Soprano, Daniella Sicari about Bloom, a multidisciplinary concert incorporating art song, visual art and live inspired painting. The evening is centred around the imagery of flowers, and aims to create a luscious evening for audiences. The programme showcases female composers as the predominant repertoire choice whilst also including a hint to a very well known piece that will need no introduction.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to poet Michelle Penn about Seed, an evening of poetry, art and sound. Seed will feature poets Luke Kennard, Helen Bowell, L Kiew and Richard Price, who all evolve language in surprising directions. There will also be a new collaborative piece from Corrupted Poetry; a pop-up visual exhibition; and sound sculpture from Fractured Strings.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to musician, Rowan Flack about Giant Folk,  an alternative folk-jazz group led by vocalist Rowan Flack. They play mysterious folk songs, hidden and understated jazz standards and their esoteric, original compositions which are experimental and magical in nature. Over the last few years, Giant Folk have established their own unique flair and lighthearted sensitivity by flowing between folk melodies, ambient soundscapes and contemporary jazz improvisation. Their first release, River Run was a two-track EP featuring the Scandinavian-inspired title track River Run and a Latin Bossa cover of Waters of March (Aguas De Marcos) by Antonio Carlos Jobim and Elis Regina. Since then, they have released both ‘Fish Out of Water’ and most recently in May 2023 – ‘Earth Live Sessions’ on Future Fables Records. The band features a mix of musicians including Jack Lecomer (bass, production), Sol Grimshaw (guitar) and Sylvan Biscoe (Tenor sax). Their connection with music and nature brings them together to create a distinct textural soundscape, still holding its roots firmly in modern jazz.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to singer, Phillipa Hyde who is performing at this years Bloomsbury Festival. It was in the eighteenth century that the seeds of modern day Bloomsbury were sown. In an area of farmland just north of Holborn, the erection of the grand edifices of Montagu House and Southampton (later Bedford) House heralded the development of the Georgian district that we still recognise today. The later purchase of Montagu House to serve as the first British Museum ensured the area would become synonymous with culture and learning. John, 2nd Duke of Montagu, was a renowned patron of the arts and appears in Marcellus Laroon’s 1730s painting ‘A Music Party at Montagu House’. Taking our inspiration from the rural past of the area, and the cultural world surrounding John Montagu, Bloomsbury Baroque presents a vocal and instrumental reimagining of the music party, drawing on the pastoral themes that were fashionable within music, poetry and the arts of the time.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Croatian-American Musician Michelle Hromin who performs works by Steve Reich, Liza Lim, Unsuk Chin, Paquito d’Rivera, as well as her own compositions, redefining the sonic possibilities of solo clarinet playing. Using facets such as electronics and delay pedals in addition to acoustic clarinet playing, these works move through genres such jazz, indie, classical, and contemporary music and explore her personal relationship with her instrument and development as an artist.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Jean Woollard and Nick Murray about Life Lines - a mix of dance, poetry and live music exploring aspects of the Bloomsbury festival’s theme, Grow. Sage Dance Company is a ballet-based contemporary dance company for people of 55 yrs plus and Rack Press Poetry is an independent small poetry press based in Bloomsbury and Wales. Together with their friends – professional musicians, fellow dancers and poets, including Michèle Roberts, Nicholas Murray and Róisín Tierney – they invite you to join them for what they hope will be a relaxing, entertaining and thought-provoking hour. Building on the success of many previous events they have created separately for Bloomsbury Festival, for the first time this year these organisations have joined forces to create something a little different.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to three Contemporary Poets, poets Therese Kieran, Tim Rich and John Simmons who will be reading poems specially written for the Bloomsbury festival on the theme of Grow.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Amber Fabian & Mark Malcomson from City Lit, an adult education college in Holborn about the Mental Wealth Festival. This year, the festival focuses on connections, exploring ways that connection supports and enhances mental health and wellbeing and celebrating the numerous ways in which we connect with others, ourselves, and the world around us through a series of free or low-fee events including talks, panel discussions, and workshops.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to scientist, Antonio Rivas about Blue Light - A one-act first-person monologue recounting the story of Nobel prize winner Marie Curie.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Penny Burns of Camden Tour Guides Association about a walk she’s walking as part of this year’s festival. The walk starts at Friends House, and we will retrace the steps of some fascinating females, memorable men and inspiring institutions and learn how they helped the growth of Bloomsbury into a beacon of knowledge and learning. 

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Robert Finegan & Tara Viscardi. The Finegan Viscardi Duo launch their Debut EP ‘Uncovered Roots’ at the 2023 Bloomsbury Festival, coinciding with this year’s festival theme ‘Grow’.

Bloomsbury Radio chat to Bex Hughes about Bookshop Crawls - a fun way to explore second-hand, specialist, indie and chain bookshops across Bloomsbury and Kings Cross. 

Come along, meet fellow book lovers, swap book recommendations and explore bookshops together, with nobody asking if you’re really sure you need any more books. You can book here: https://bloomsburyfestival.org.uk/2023-festival-events/

Photograph by Emma Aveston.