Descendants

Marlon and Valerie


Listen Later

One year on from the toppling of the Colston Statue in Bristol, Descendants asks... how close is each of us to the legacy of Britain's role in slavery? And who does that mean our lives are connected to?

Yrsa Daley-Ward narrates seven episodes telling the stories of people whose lives today are all connected through this history and its legacy.

As a teenager growing up in South London, Marlon discovered steel pan and it changed his life. While grappling with the meaning of his own surname, and how it connects to the history of British slavery, he uncovers how the instrument he loves was also born out of the legacies of this history. The heritage of carnival and steel pan leads us to Valerie, a white woman, born and raised in Trinidad, who seeks to understand how her family ended up on this isle - and discovers her ancestor's role in the events which led to the creation of a cultural institution.
Producers: Polly Weston, Candace Wilson, Rema Mukena
Editor: Kirsten Lass
Academic consultants: Matthew Smith and Rachel Lang of the UCL Centre for the Study of the Legacies of British Slavery
Additional genealogical research is by Laura Berry

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

DescendantsBy BBC Radio 4

  • 5
  • 5
  • 5
  • 5
  • 5

5

13 ratings


More shows like Descendants

View all
In Our Time by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time

5,395 Listeners

The Documentary Podcast by BBC World Service

The Documentary Podcast

1,858 Listeners

Seriously... by BBC Radio 4

Seriously...

263 Listeners

Global News Podcast by BBC World Service

Global News Podcast

7,817 Listeners

Thinking Allowed by BBC Radio 4

Thinking Allowed

312 Listeners

6 Minute English by BBC Radio

6 Minute English

1,777 Listeners

Learning English Conversations by BBC Radio

Learning English Conversations

1,060 Listeners

More or Less: Behind the Stats by BBC Radio 4

More or Less: Behind the Stats

901 Listeners

Desert Island Discs by BBC Radio 4

Desert Island Discs

2,083 Listeners

The Infinite Monkey Cage by BBC Radio 4

The Infinite Monkey Cage

2,082 Listeners

Newshour by BBC World Service

Newshour

1,055 Listeners

The Audio Long Read by The Guardian

The Audio Long Read

822 Listeners

Intelligence Squared by Intelligence Squared

Intelligence Squared

780 Listeners

Today in Focus by The Guardian

Today in Focus

1,015 Listeners

Full Disclosure with James O'Brien by Global

Full Disclosure with James O'Brien

312 Listeners

Americast by BBC News

Americast

748 Listeners

You're Dead to Me by BBC Radio 4

You're Dead to Me

3,020 Listeners

The Rest Is Politics by Goalhanger

The Rest Is Politics

3,427 Listeners

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society by History Hit

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society

1,116 Listeners

Empire by Goalhanger

Empire

1,989 Listeners

The News Agents by Global

The News Agents

1,001 Listeners

Off Air with Jane & Fi by The Times

Off Air with Jane & Fi

146 Listeners

Witch by BBC Radio 4

Witch

537 Listeners