Walnut Street Collection

Number of Items in the collection: 26.
Venues where material can be listened to: Record office, EMOHA
Media available on: CD

The Walnut Street collection holds 26 interviews, which were conducted as part of a documentary arts project in 1994. The project was inspired by the City Challenge Project, which was operating in the area at the time, and initiated by Crash Arts. A publication entitled 'Walnut Street: Past, Present and Future' was produced, in conjunction with Leicester City Council, as a result of the interviews. A popular talk, with illustrations of the area, based on the material is available in EMOHA's talk programme.

The interviews in the collection feature the recollections and experiences of the people who lived in the Walnut Street/ Bede Island area from the First World War and the 1920s through to the 1990s, providing a vibrant portrait of this area of Leicester City. Interviewees give their views on the 'slum clearances' of the 1950s-1970s and express their thoughts about the City Challenge Project, providing a snap shot of the area in 1994.