Trailblazers by Periplum

Hartlepool-born writer, director and Disability rights activist Vici talks about discovering counter-culture while growing up in a pit village in the East Durham coalfield. She shares her memories of moving to London where “the streets were paved with punk”, her love of bands including New Model Army and Spear Of Destiny, and of being inspired by the DIY ethos of the movement.  Vici talks about th...

On 2nd August 1990, in the lead-up to the first Gulf War, British Airways flight 149 was grounded in Kuwait. Christine was on-board that flight, and was one of 385 passengers and crew taken hostage by the Iraqi military. She describes how that life-changing experience has informed her practice as an educational psychologist dedicated to improving children’s lives.     The innovator behind the revo...

Now celebrating their 20th year, Urban Kaos Dance Company is led by Stockton-based founders Amy and Kelly. They recall their life-long dancing careers and the evolution of the company - from their rebellion against the body perfectionism of professional dance to forming their own ethos where movement is for everyone.    They talk about their work which has reached thousands of people of all sizes,...

10 years ago, the ‘No More Page 3’ campaign finally achieved its goal of removing the regular photographic feature of topless female models shown on Page 3 of The Sun, a self-proclaimed family newspaper.  Hartlepool native Jennifer Yuill was one of the core activists in that movement and recalls her fellow campaigners, the strategies and techniques they deployed, battling with online trolls, and h...

Artist, film-maker and professional rugby player Ella describes her journey to the top domestic levels of the sport, from a childhood in Darlington when she was the only girl on the pitch, to playing with some of the best rugby players in the world.   She talks about the camaraderie and friendships born from rugby culture, highlighting the body positivity it encourages and how there’s a place for...

Mother and daughter Yusra and Abigail describe their individual journeys from North East Brazil to North East England. Yusra tells how she came to this country in order to find a safer life, for herself and her famil y. She speaks about her experiences of the asylum system as she was moved from Croydon to Birmingham and finally to Teesside. Teaching herself English, she speaks of the support given...

Middlesbrough-based Maureen Richardson was one of a kind - an early environmental campaigner and one-woman protest movement. Here, Chris Corbett, Community Engagement Officer at Teesside Archives, talks about how she found inspiration in the life of Maureen, and how it resonates with her own passion for protecting the natural environment.    Chris describes how the 1970s saw Maureen engage in larg...

Ellie - full name Elisha Rosemary Lowther - is founder of the Free to be Me project in Stockton and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. Her work on raising cultural awareness around intersectional inclusion and transgender issues has been nationally and internationally recognised. She has been nominated for a National Diversity Award, formed the all-inclusive choir Systemic, set up the first tr...

Environmental Scientist Sarah talks about the impact of contaminated land on communities in former industrial areas as well as how her work in regenerating those landscapes is reconnecting her with generations of her family that laboured in the steelworks and other local industries. Born in Guisborough and raised in Redcar, Sarah describes her fascination with geology, and how the Environmental Pr...

In a frank and fearless interview, youth worker Lucy recounts her upbringing in Yarm, her early love of writing, reading and sports, and her discovery of rave culture as a regular at the legendary Tall Trees nightclub.   She talks about the evolution of her career, from becoming a key player in Teesside’s drug rehabilitation initiatives to her current role as Operations Manager at the Corner House...

Born in 1937, Sylvia recalls moments from a remarkable life full of fearless adventure and a love of animals.  She remembers taking dance classes at the age of three, singing at army camp concert parties, and becoming a competitive tap dancer as a child. She also describes the adventures of adulthood - living in places as far apart as Manchester, Copenhagen, South Africa and Redcar, and her workin...

Clare’s life was transformed after becoming the adoptive mother of 3 children with special needs. She left her vocation as a nurse in London and found a new life in Redcar with her family. Claire talks about growing up in Bermondsey and finding her career path before her life changed radically. Now a campaigner for parent-carer rights,    Clare describes the challenges of navigating the social car...

Writer, Artist and Director of Tees Women Poets, Kirsten Luckins recounts the family myth surrounding her name and the travels of her freewheeling youth. Now based in Hartlepool, she talks about her attraction to extremes, the upside-down nature of life in Hong Kong and the joys of walking in urban and natural terrains   As a poet, Kirsten maps her movement away from personal verse towards non-hum...

Billingham-based author Linda Dooks recalls her strict upbringing on her adoptive family’s farm, where an overbearing mother told her she would never amount to anything and that there was little point in wasting time on reading. Linda remembers how, despite this, she would hide books in the hollows of trees to sustain her love of literature, both reading and writing.    Leaving her unconventional...

Lisa is Creative Director at Priory Woods School & Art College, an all-age community special school in East Middlesbrough. Raised in a council house in Thorntree, she talks about how her journey began as an energetic three year old. In an emotional and honest interview, Lisa recalls how her mother used to clean the dance studios to pay for her to attend dance classes.   She describes how she b...

Environmental Consultant Dr Vera Jones, who has been shortlisted for the WISE Outstanding Women In Science Award, is a specialist in water quality, and talks about the global threats posed by water pollution. She discusses the lack of female role models at the beginning of her career, her work in improving gender equality within her field, and breaking through old stereotypes of leadership to beco...

Poet and creative learning practitioner, Aisha discusses her love of Teesside and how she made it her home after leaving her native Reading. She talks about the notion of home, being half-Nepalese and half-English, the influence of her family and the shock of the 2024 Middlesbrough riots.    Aisha describes how creativity can be found in the everyday - from text messages to Excel spreadsheets. She...

Jane is a visual artist whose work has been shown at ARC Stockton, the Python Gallery, Middlesbrough, and in South Korea. Born in Rwanda, she came to Teesside at the age of 20.    She talks about her childhood in Africa, and her arrival in Britain, from the difference in the way the food tastes to her wonder at seeing fields of yellow flowers lining the roads on her first journey to Stockton. She...

Jan Doherty is a Textile Artist and former Artistic Director of Stockton International Riverside Festival (SIRF). She talks about the evolution of her creative life, from being raised in a female household in Dundee and developing a childhood passion for textiles inspired by her family.   Jan describes how she forged a career in the arts, developing arts & crafts festivals in the East Midlands...

Karen Norton has been awarded an MBE for her lifelong services to education. The retired head of Junction Farm school in Stockton, Karen talks about her upbringing in Middlesbrough with a close, supportive family. She recalls how her parents were the first people in her family to own their own home. She describes the culture shock of going to university in inner-city Birmingham and her experience...

Power of Women (POW) was set up by Dr Jane Turner, Pro Vice Chancellor of Teesside University, after a shocking 2016 report identifying Middlesbrough as the ‘Worst Place to Grow Up a Girl’.   Here, Sophie McKenna, Campaign Manager for POW, recalls her own happy childhood in the village of Brotton, her education and career, and how working for The Shore Trust - with its emphasis on supporting disad...