Who gets to be remembered and why? London is one of the most diverse cities in the world, but our statues, plaques and street names don’t always reflect our city’s stories.

Following the tragic murder of George Floyd in the US and a global outpouring for the mass movement for Black lives, Britain’s own role in transatlantic slavery and ensuing legacies of institutional racism were catapulted into wider public debate.

Unveiling hidden histories from West India Quay to Bow, this episode explores London’s complex relationship with slavery, colonialism, honouring and remembrance – and how deeply these legacies run within the public realm.

We ask Londoners today whether markers of the past can impact the present and offer a window into the debates and discussions we must have about the future of the city’s public spaces.

Listeners should be advised that this episode contains a single swear word at 11m12s. You may like to skip forward by a couple of seconds if you don't want to hear this.

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Presenter: Aindrea Emelife, Curator of Modern and Contemporary at MOWAA (Museum of West African Art).

Contributors: Debbie Weekes-Barnard, Deputy Mayor, Communities and Social Justice; Douglas Gilmore, managing director of the Museum of Docklands; Fin Kennedy, playwright and producer; Gary Younge, author, broadcaster and academic at the University of Manchester; Gillian Jackson, cultural strategist and former director of engagement at the House of St. Barnabas; Lynette Nabbosa, CEO and co-founder of Elimu.

Produced by Sylvie Carlos. Sound design by Weyland Mckenzie-Witter. Hosted on Spotify. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast series are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the Mayor of London.

Where are all the women in the public realm?

There are more statues of animals than named women in London’s public spaces. So we look at the first statue of a woman in Parliament Square, Westminster. Listen as we share the story of Millicent Fawcett who, alongside many other women, fought hard to secure women’s right to vote.

We then take the journey from Westminster to West Hampstead, Camden, where pioneering novelist and educator Beryl Gilroy became one of London’s first Black headteachers – at a school that, until recently, was named after a slave-owner. Now, a mural outside the newly renamed primary school where she taught is a permanent celebration of her legacy.

Two pieces of eye–catching art tell a multitude of stories – not only of two women’s achievements centuries apart, but also of the Windrush generation, London’s past links to slavery and empire, and modern-day strides towards feminism.

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Presenter: Aindrea Emelife, Curator of Modern and Contemporary at MOWAA (Museum of West African Art).

Contributors: Darla Gilroy, Beryl Gilroy’s daughter and Associate Dean of the Knowledge Exchange of Central St Martin’s; Debbie Weekes-Barnard, Deputy Mayor, Communities and Social Justice; Eleanor Pinfield, Head of Art on the Underground; Justine Simons OBE, Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries; Manasi Pophale, founder of History Speak; Zing Tsjeng, journalist and author of the Forgotten Women series.

Produced by Sylvie Carlos. Sound design by Weyland Mckenzie-Witter. Hosted on Spotify. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast series are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the Mayor of London.

What does it feel like experiencing London as a disabled or differently abled person?

In 2005, artwork depicting a pregnant disabled woman was installed on Trafalgar Square’s Fourth Plinth. In this episode, we revisit the sculpture ‘Alison Lapper Pregnant’, and meet the woman who inspired both the piece and public discourse that followed.

Diversity is in London’s DNA, but the capital wasn’t always designed with everyone in mind.

We speak to Londoners navigating the city with disabilities both seen and unseen, and reimagine how we can create more accessible public spaces, asking vital questions in the process. What if our public space isn’t a park or a city centre, but an online world? How we can create an equitable experience for everyone?

For many, our streets are not always experienced as neutral spaces. We discover why the choices we make about them can impact more than just our daily commute.

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Presenter: Aindrea Emelife, Curator of Modern and Contemporary at MOWAA (Museum of West African Art).

Contributors: Alison Lapper, artist; Alex Cowan, archivist for the National Disability Arts Collection and Archive; Emily Yates, accessibility consultant and journalist; Jameisha Prescod, filmmaker, journalist and founder of You Look Ok To Me; Justine Simons OBE, Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries.

Produced by Sylvie Carlos. Sound design by Weyland Mckenzie-Witter. Hosted on Spotify. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast series are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the Mayor of London.

Can a church still be an open, welcoming place if you don’t belong to the same faith? And how do Londoners today feel about experiencing places of worship as part of the public realm?

In religious spaces, we are used to encountering memorials to notable, wealthy individuals, but not necessarily to ordinary people. In this episode, we discover the memorial to the victims of COVID-19 in the heart of St Paul’s Cathedral, one of London’s most iconic buildings.

Bringing together discussions around secular and sacred spaces, we find out from Londoners if a COVID-19 monument in a religious space can work to include everyone, and hear about one cathedral’s hopes to do exactly that.

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Presenter: Aindrea Emelife, Curator of Modern and Contemporary at MOWAA (Museum of West African Art).

Contributors: Debbie Weekes-Barnard, Deputy Mayor, Communities and Social Justice; Dr Paula Gooder, Canon Chancellor at St Paul’s Cathedral; Jasvir Singh, Founder of South Asian Heritage Month, family barrister, and activist; Mark Sapaen, St Barnabas Church, Walthamstow.

Produced by Sylvie Carlos. Sound design by Weyland Mckenzie-Witter. Hosted on Spotify. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast series are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the Mayor of London.

How do we remember the countless, unnamed people who have shaped London and our society?

This episode uncovers the lives of ayahs – women who served as nannies, nurses and ladies’ maids for British families in Asia at the height of the Empire. The blue plaque on the Ayahs’ Home now commemorates contributions they made, from India to England and everywhere in-between. 

London’s blue plaques can be seen far and wide, on buildings both humble and grand. Not every name, however, is immortalised, and here we pay tribute to a group of people whose story is rarely told, but is part of London – a city strongly shaped by migration.

Charting stories lost and found in London’s East End, this episode examines how a unique building helped give an identity to generations of working-class migrant women living in London, and how a young, east London woman helped make that house a landmark.

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Presenter: Aindrea Emelife, Curator of Modern and Contemporary at MOWAA (Museum of West African Art)

Contributors: Debbie Weekes-Barnard, Deputy Mayor, Communities and Social Justice; Farhanah Bello, Deputy director, Client Strategist, Sotheby’s; Jasvir Singh, Founder of South Asian Heritage Month, family barrister, and activist; Niti Acharya, Museum Manager, Hackney Museum; Paula Akpan, journalist and historian, founder of The Black Queer Travel Guide.

Produced by Sylvie Carlos. Sound design by Weyland Mckenzie-Witter. Hosted on Spotify. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast series are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the Mayor of London.

One afternoon in 1895, while being transported to prison Oscar Wilde was made to stand on a railway platform, where people jeered and spat at him – a humiliating ordeal.

This episode takes us to south west London, where the poet and playwright paved the way for LGBTQ+ rights through his experience and is remembered with a very special plaque.

London’s LGBTQ+ history can sometimes feel hard to see or find, as much of it is hidden, lost or goes untold. Supported by the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, London’s rainbow plaques are designed to highlight this heritage in our streets. 

What does it mean to queer Londoners to see LGBTQ+ histories commemorated in the city where they live, work and love? In this episode, we talk to queer Londoners today about the importance of recognising significant people, places and moments in LGBTQ+ history, through the lens of the city’s rainbow plaques and beyond.

Listeners should be advised that this episode contains a single swear word at 13m41s. You may like to skip forward by a couple of seconds if you don't want to hear this.

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Presenter: Aindrea Emelife, Curator of Modern and Contemporary at MOWAA (Museum of West African Art).

Contributors: Christopher Sweeney, host of the podcast Homo Sapiens; David Robson, Lambeth Council and former chair of Wandsworth LGBTQ+ Forum London LGBT Forums Network ; Jack Guinness, founder of The Queer Bible; Laura Harford, curator, Studio Voltaire; Paula Akpan, journalist and historian, founder of The Black Queer Travel Guide.

*LGBTQ+ encompasses: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Queer, and + includes indicates other categories such as Questioning, Asexual, Intersex, Pansexual.

Produced by Sylvie Carlos. Sound design by Weyland Mckenzie-Witter. Hosted on Spotify. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast series are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the Mayor of London.

Who gets to decide who is honoured in our public spaces, and how? Our London, Our Spaces is a new, six-part podcast series exploring the art and places that make up the capital, as told by the people who call it home.

Each episode starts with a work of art or memorial to some of London’s most fascinating figures. We hear of pioneering people, including Oscar Wilde, Millicent Fawcett, Beryl Gilroy and Alison Lapper, and discover those that have traditionally been overlooked in our streets and spaces. Along the way, we get to know some of the incredible people that have made these hidden histories visible.   

Telling untold stories and breathing new life into the public realm, this podcast offers a window into the past, present and future of London – reimagining our collective identity as Londoners.

Episode one premieres soon.

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Produced by Sylvie Carlos. Hosted on Spotify. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast series are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the Mayor of London.