“I have faith… I have faith that this will all end one day. Who knows what the future will bring?”
I can imagine these are the words of one of my ancestors. Watch the accent - Grandad was part of the Windrush movement - and don’t get twisted, his stay in this country is legit.
But listen - I’m done with waging wars on territories I didn’t even pay rent on…
I’m a bit of a me connoisseur. I know what I mean when I say certain things…
To celebrate a year of 100 Voices, Women's Prize longlistee Yvonne Battle-Felton shares a sneak peak of her fantastic piece that will be part of the 100 voices book if we get enough support from you! If you like what you hear please consider pledging on Unbound https://unbound.com/books/100-voices/
"I knew I had to do it. Even if it felt like I had nothing to contribute, I would have to think of something."
Writer and editor of the 100 Voices for 100 Years project, Miranda Roszkowski realises how hard it is to talk about achievements, and pays tribute to the 99 contributors who have gone before her.
"Life continues to throw challenges and obstacles at me. But I know I can deal with them."
For Louise Houghton her path was very clear from the age of four - she was destined to be in front of the camera. Her ambition, drive and a bit of luck have got her a long way. In this uplifting piece about being true to yourself despite the bumps in the road, Louise shares her story and inspires us along the way.
"If you just teach one person something positive, then it's worth it."
When costume coordinators Amy Trend, Hannah Monkley and Amy Towle dressed as Suffragettes for the Women's March in 2017 they didn't expect the fantastic response they got, or how it would lead to a whole new mindset. In an exclusive for 100 Voices for 100 Years the team behind the popular podcast Same Shit Different Century talk about the birth of the podcast, how they are inspired by the generations of women who have gone before them and how some problems are really still the same.
“It took me a while to realise I wrote a lot about being a mum.”
Becoming a mature student on a Masters writing course was a dream come true for Sarah Hegarty. In May 2006 she submitted her dissertation and eagerly awaited the results. But by September her thoughts couldn't have been further from the writer's desk.
"She gave birth to most of us in the room above the door. We called it the Boudoir."
To writer Tamara Pollock, growing up as one of 8 children wasn't anything special. Never mind the 24 Italian students that came to live with them, or the strangers who sometimes appeared at their dinner table. It was only later she came to see that all her mother had done for the family.
Tamara celebrates her mother's daring, distinctive style, quirky personality and small acts of kindness in this charming addition to the 100 voices for 100 years project.
"Spend a penny? I had no idea."
When Damhnait Monaghan's moved from Canada to the UK she knew there would be challenges, but she didn't think that language would be one of them. In this charming and comic piece she tells of her life as a linguistic double agent and how it might come in handy. Do they say that here?
"For a few hours a week I could escape to a world of literature..."
Reshma Ruia arrived in Manchester fresh from her life sun-drenched life in Italy, and further back India. Once she got used to the rain, she found inspiration in the streets around her. She tells us about her journey into the world of literature - and how it wasn't always easy to juggle with motherhood.
"Armed with lever-arch files and chafe-proof underwear I was embarking on my first operational tour of duty..."
Writer Sarah Armstrong tells her story of how she signed up to be an army doctor. Her imagined life as a real-life Lara Croft was quickly forgotten when the fitness challenges left her retching at the side of the running track. It took several months but she got stronger.
Was she strong enough for Afghanistan?
When I was seven I turned to my Grandmother and said "I get so excited in the theatre, I feel like I'm going to be sick."
Sian Brett, writer and stand up, tells us how since she was a child she had been sure her future lay in theatre, until her Dad's sudden sickness made it hard to be certain about anything.
"If you thought a letter would put you scarily outside your comfort zone, would you write one?"
Alison Hitchcock, co-founder of From Me To You, a charity that distributes letters to cancer patients, tells us how she needed to face her own fears and perceived limitations and how helping others has led her all the way to a busking spot on Carnaby Street...
"It has my real name, my birth name, written neatly in black ink, from back when I wrote with such things as fountain pens."
Amy Foster, teacher, performer and one half of Croydon Bicycle Theatre tells us about a childhood almanac that has escaped the myriad book culls over the years and how rediscovering it years later, she realises that its presence in her life may have been more than physical.
