Growing up in a family with a strong oral storytelling tradition where the radio was almost always on, I’ve long held an appreciation for spoken stories. I’ve been commissioned to write podcasts and audio drama, with my work listened to around the world and broadcast on BBC Radio 4 Extra.
Coal Face Poetry Soundscapes (2025) – Arts Council National Lottery Grant / Supported by Redhills Durham, University College London, The Cultural Spring and Sunderland Culture.
A series of 3 x 15″ poetry soundscapes which feature many of the verbatim or ‘found’ poems which I wrote for the COAL FACE exhibition at Sunderland Museum & Winter Gardens from February – March 2025. The soundscapes interweave dramatic readings of my writing with snippets from interviews with some of the 60 people who participated in the project. My poetry is performed by Angela Rose and John McMahon, while Nick John Williams audio produced and edited the pieces.
Coal Face Audio Documentaries (2025) – Arts Council National Lottery Grant / Supported by Redhills Durham, University College London, The Cultural Spring and Sunderland Culture.
A series of 3 x 20″ audio documentaries which tell the stories of 15 people with mining heritage in Washington. There are discussions of brave ancestors, the pivotal role that women played within the coalfield communities, and what it means to have mining heritage now that the pits are long closed. I wrote and narrated the scripts, and curated the audio. The documentaries feature music from acclaimed folk musician Bill Elliott and were audio edited and produced by Nick John Williams.
Dogpeople (2024) – Arts Council National Lottery Grant / A No More Nowt Commission
DOGPEOPLE is an 8 episode podcast which explores the social history of flapping, or independent greyhound racing, in County Durham. I wrote, narrated and interviewed for each script, as well as curating the audio, which was edited by the very talented Bridget Hamilton. DOGPEOPLE explores the origins of flapping and traces the sport through its heyday and devastating decline, including the switch to licensed greyhound racing. It is part of a broader combined arts project called DOGPEOPLE, which is supported using public funding by Arts Council England and commissioned through No More Nowt’s ‘Untold Stories’ strand. It is delivered in partnership with No More Nowt, Redhills Durham, New Writing North, The Story at Mount Oswald and Wheatley Hill Heritage Centre.
You can find out more about the DOGPEOPLE project at https://dogpeopleproject.wordpress.com/ and access the first episode of the podcast on Spotify below, which will take you to the rest of the series:
https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dr-louise-powell/episodes/1–A-Working-Class-Sport-e2idsve
Coal Face [2023] – Commissioned by Redhills CIO, University College London and The Cultural Spring.
I wrote, narrated and curated ‘Coal Face’, the first stage of a project which captured the heritage of the Durham coalfield across communities and generations. I wrote and narrated this 56 minute podcast which focuses upon Washington, and curated the audio. I foreground incredible stories told about Washington’s mines and its transition into a New Town. I also feature stories from the 13 men who participated in ‘Coal Face’, their families, photographer Andy Martin, Professor John Tomaney (University College London), Ross Forbes (Durham Miners’ Association) and Nick Malyan (Redhills). Edited by Nick John Williams.
Dogpeople Pilot (2023) – A Culture County Commission
‘Dogpeople’ is the pilot episode of a social history podcast series about the history of flapping or independent track Wheatley Hill Greyhound Stadium. It foregrounds the memories and stories of the people who went to the track. I wrote, narrated and interviewed for the podcast, while Bridget Hamilton was audio editor and producer. ‘Dogpeople’ has been streamed around the world and I have just been awarded National Lottery Project Grant funding, as well as a commission from No More Nowt, to create an 8 episode series for 2024 broadcast.
The Pitmen Flappers (2022) – A BBC New Creatives North Commission
Broadcast on BBC Radio 4 Extra as part of ‘New Creatives Drama’.
‘The Pitmen Flappers’ revolves around the flapping or independent track of Wheatley Hill Greyhound Stadium. Ex-miner Jimmy has twenty-four hours to pay off local loan shark Big Phil, or face devastating consequences. Selected for broadcast on BBC Radio 4 Extra in June 2022, ‘The Pitmen Flappers’ can be accessed through BBC Sounds at the below link, or on SoundCloud:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00181c0
DR LOUISE POWELL 