Welcome to Albion - our exploration of what it means to be English, and what we mean by England.

In this episode of OffScript, Dash Arts’ Artistic Director Josephine Burton is joined by Caroline Lucas for a thoughtful and urgent conversation about Englishness - beyond flags and nostalgia.

Drawing on her book Another England, Caroline shares her thoughts on how land, belonging and identity shape our politics and our culture; how England’s stories have been constructed and contested; and why reclaiming a generous, complex vision of England matters now.

Since 2022, Dash Arts has been digging into landscape and language - from reimagining Middlemarch by George Eliot in 1980s Coventry, to running speech-making workshops with more than 600 people across the country. We’ve been listening to who we are — and who we could be.

Join us as we ask: what does Englishness mean to you?

Albion will culminate in 2026 with our new touring theatre production, Our Public House. Get your tickets and to find out more on the Dash Arts website : https://www.dasharts.org.uk/our-public-house 

Our intro music is Fakiiritanssi by Marouf Majidi

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What does it mean to stay balanced and grounded in a shifting world?

This episode of OffScript was recorded live at STEADY, the second event in Dash Arts’ We Are Free To Change The World series. Through live performance and conversation, the evening focused on staying; on staying open without burning out, staying yourself in dialogue without collapsing into agreement or disagreement and staying human amid pressure, speed and polarisation.

Hosted by Dash Arts’ Artistic Director Josephine Burton, with Natasha Walter, Liz Slade, Tasneim Zyada, and Mohammed Ali, the contributors shared perspectives rooted in activism, faith, art and lived experience. Together, they reflect on what it means to remain grounded while responding to a world in flux — and how steadiness itself can be a radical, collective practice.

Find out more about their work here:

Natasha Walter - www.natashawalter.co.uk

Liz Slade - www.elizabethslade.uk

Tasneim Zyada - www.instagram.com/tasneimzyada

Mohammed Ali - www.artofmohammedali.com

The live event was co-presented by Dash Arts, Arts Admin and Fete of Britain.

Get your tickets for the live events for We Are Free To Change The World by going to the Dash Arts website : https://www.dasharts.org.uk/we-are-free 

Our intro music is Fakiiritanssi by Marouf Majidi 

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In this episode of OffScript Josephine Burton is joined by Professor Lyndsey Stonebridge. They delve into Hannah Arendt's belief in collective action as the essence of freedom. 

Lyndsey discusses Arendt's life, her impact on political philosophy, and her relevance in contemporary social movements. Exploring how her theories inspire artists and activists today, the conversation highlights Arendt's idea of politics as something we perform in public and the power of human resilience and action.

Get your tickets for the live events for We Are Free To Change The World by going to the Dash Arts website : https://www.dasharts.org.uk/we-are-free 

Our intro music is Fakiiritanssi by Marouf Majidi

Photo of Lindsay Stonebridge by Ione Saizar.

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Headlines in the episode:

00:00 Introduction to OffScript

00:46 Exploring Freedom with Lyndsey Stonebridge 

02:56 Hannah Arendt's Life and Influence 

12:51 The Relevance of Arendt's Ideas Today

23:24 Art, Performance, and Political Action 

28:42 Navigating Dark Times with Hope 

40:22 Conclusion and Upcoming Events

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What does it take to prepare for change — artistically, emotionally, politically? 

This episode of OffScript was recorded live at the opening event in Dash Arts’ We Are Free To Change The World series.

Through performance and conversation, the event explored the conditions that help artists and creative activists find their ground to listen, to make, to resist, and to come together.

Hosted by Dash Arts’ Artistic Director Josephine Burton, the conversation features Bishi Bhattacharya, Lehni Lamide Davies, Carole Cadwalladr, and Sam Lee, reflecting on readiness rooted in care, courage, and collective imagination.

Find out more about their work here:

https://www.bishi.co.uk/ 

https://www.lehnilamide.com/contact 

https://broligarchy.substack.com/about 

http://samleesong.co.uk/ 

Get your tickets for the live events for We Are Free To Change The World by going to the Dash Arts website : https://www.dasharts.org.uk/we-are-free 

Our intro music is Fakiiritanssi by Marouf Majidi 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of We Are Free to Change the World, Dash Arts’ Artistic Director Josephine Burton is joined by the legendary artist Peter Kennard.

Inspired by Hannah Arendt’s belief in our freedom to begin anew, Josephine and Peter examine how art becomes a form of political action—shifting public consciousness, exposing injustice, and giving shape to the possible futures.

They discuss the challenges of making radical work in increasingly authoritarian and fearful times, and why visual art still has the power to mobilise, unsettle, and inspire.

Peter shares stories from five decades on the frontlines of artistic dissent, reflecting on collaboration, solidarity, and the urgent need to make work now more than ever.

Get your tickets for the live events for We Are Free To Change The World by going to the Dash Arts website: https://www.dasharts.org.uk/we-are-free 

Our intro music is Fakiiritanssi by Marouf Majidi 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“[Dash] reaches beyond the creation of its work and its interpretation of human experience. You go to places that others don't.”

For Dash Arts’ 20th anniversary, OffScript host Josephine Burton is joined by one of the UK’s leading champions of justice, Baroness Helena Kennedy LT KC.

Helena and Josephine explore how the arts and the law shift public imagination, from movements for social justice to the urgent need for transitional justice in Ukraine and beyond.

She also reflects on her decades-long groundbreaking work in fighting for human rights, women’s rights, and miscarriages of justice—and why jury trials are essential to any healthy democracy.

Get your tickets for the live events for We Are Free To Change The World by going to the Dash Arts website : dasharts.org.uk/we-are-free 

Our intro music is Fakiiritanssi by Marouf Majidi 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the second episode of our mini-series, "We Are Free to Change the World," inspired by Hannah Arendt's call to action, Dash Arts' Artistic Director Josephine Burton is joined by Labour MP for Norwich South, Clive Lewis. 

From his House of Commons office, Clive Lewis discusses the struggle for freedom within contemporary politics. The conversation explores his belief that the "only real freedom we have is the freedom to... find out about the world around us," and his concerns about the "grim authoritarianism and a culture of fear" stifling creativity and genuine engagement in the Labour Party.

Join Josephine and Clive as they discuss the essential role of imagination and art in shaping political visions—from science fiction to the NHS, and the loss of social democratic parties’ ability to “dream big.” They also explore the difference between optimism and pragmatic hope as a driving force for political change, Clive’s experience as a participant in Dash Arts’ speechmaking workshops and the need for collaboration and solidarity to counter increasing polarisation and fear.

Get your tickets for the live events for We Are Free To Change The World by going to the Dash Arts website : https://www.dasharts.org.uk/we-are-free 

Our intro music is Fakiiritanssi by Marouf Majidi 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Through a series of live and digital conversations - we’re exploring how artists and activists challenge, inspire, and motivate us to see the world differently. 

Join Josephine Burton as she sits down with musician and artist Ian Bruce and campaigner Clare Farrell to discuss creativity, activism, and the courage to imagine radical change. In this groundbreaking episode, hear how artists are transforming protest, challenging systemic barriers, and creating spaces for people to come together. 

From Extinction Rebellion to grassroots movements, discover how creative individuals are reimagining democracy, confronting climate crisis, and building solidarity. Provocative, inspiring, and deeply human, their conversation reveals how we can all play a role in changing the world. 

Recorded in the Bureau of Silly Ideas on the 7th anniversary of Clare co-founding Extinction Rebellion. 

Get your tickets for the live events for We Are Free To Change The World by going to the Dash Arts website : https://www.dasharts.org.uk/we-are-free 

Our intro music is Fakiiritanssi by Marouf Majidi

This podcast is marked explicit for language only.

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In part 2 we’re looking at the impact of politics on the most recent productions from Dash Arts. We explore our 2025 production of The Reckoning, which brought real-life testimonies from Ukraine to the stage, and the upcoming 2026 production of Our Public House, inspired by speeches from people across England. 

Marina Pesenti, former Director of the Ukrainian Institute, looks back at how more than a decade of artistic research, events and productions deepened our understanding of the Ukrainian context and enriched the work. Similarly, playwright Barney Norris reflects on the challenges of continuing to navigate the shifting political and social landscape in the UK and its influence on Our Public House.

Go to the Dash Arts website for your tickets to We Are Free To Change The World; a new series of three Dash Cafés exploring how artists and creative activists respond to the urgency of our times. Through performance, film and conversation, each event will bring together creative voices to consider how we act and how we do this together. 

Our intro music is Fakiiritanssi by Marouf Majidi 

And you can hear audio taken from Dash Arts’ production of The Reckoning at Arcola Theatre in May-June 2025

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In this special two-part series, we're celebrating Dash Arts' 20th birthday by looking back at how politics has impacted our work over the past two decades.

In episode one, join Josephine Burton as she explores how artists and creative activists respond to the urgency of our times. Hear from storyteller Sophie Austin on our production of One Thousand and One Nights, which challenged preconceived notions of Arabic culture, and from musician Sasha Ilyukevich who performed in our Dash Arts Dachas, some of which were covertly visited by the Russian Embassy. 

Discovering how our mission to challenge the way we see the world is woven into our DNA, and how life and global politics have consistently broken down the walls into the theatre.

With music from Sasha Ilyukevich & The Highly Skilled Migrants entitled KOLYA - КОЛЯ.

Our intro music is Fakiiritanssi by Marouf Majidi

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.