Caribbean takeaway and oral histories shared

Thanks to National Lottery players, Evewright Arts Foundation worked with Essex Records Office to train four young volunteers in recording oral histories. Participants’ stories were shared through an exhibition in the popular S&S Caribbean Café & Takeaway in Colchester, Essex.

The takeaway café provided a warm welcome. Visitors sat surrounded by wall and table collages, along with unique portraits of participants, to enjoy Caribbean cuisine. They listened to the elders’ stories playing around them, as this immersive exhibition created a feeling of catching up with old friends.

Visitors shared their own migrant stories, writing passport postcards for the memory wall, reminding us that all of our stories make up our heritage. One participant Alfred Gardener, aged 92, said: he was “proud that a man, who wouldn’t learn British history, is now history".

The full recordings have been deposited with Essex Records Office. Find out more about this project and listen to the stories collected on the Evewright website.