Concert cylinders and the first recording of the Queen’s Hall Orchestra

By Jonathan Summers, Curator of Classical Music It was exciting to receive an Edison concert cylinder as a donation recently, but much more so to discover that it is probably the first recording by members of the Queen’s Hall Orchestra. Cylinder box labels and the cylinders housed within often do…

Recording of the week: Island Grief after Hurricane Ivan

This week’s selection comes from Dr Eva del Rey, Curator of Drama and Literature Recordings and Digital Performance. British-Caribbean poet, artist and theatre maker Malika Booker reads ‘Island Grief after Hurricane Ivan’ from her 2013 collection Pepper Seed. Recorded at the British Library in May 2013 for the Between Two…

Valuing religion without believing

Paul Merchant explores oral histories with people who value religion in spite of their own unbelief.

Recording of the week: Dungeons and Dragons’ curious renaissance

This week’s selection comes from Jowan Collier, Preservation Assistant. I have a confession. Every week or so, a few friends and I gather in a small living room to play Dungeons and Dragons. Or as the Dungeon Master’s mother puts it, “to roll dice and pretend”. My character’s name is…

‘We had to get out’: 80 years since the Kindertransport

The Kindertransport 80 years on, as told through oral histories.