The Morecambe Bay Podcast

A candlelit memorial service has been held to mark the 20th anniversary of the deaths of 23 Chinese cockle pickers in Morecambe Bay.

Members of the emergency services joined locals in paying tribute at the lifeboat station in Morecambe which played a leading part in the rescue and recovery of migrants stranded on the treacherous sands of the Bay.

A cockle shell was offered as a permanent reminder of the fight against modern day slavery and in memory of those who died on the sands.

The Bishop of Blackburn, the Rt Rev Philip North, who led the service said he hoped the service would also serve to highlight continuing cases of those who are 'trapped, tricked and traded.'

How often do you go to your library?

Did you know these days they offer far more than just a book lending service?

The Friends of Heysham Library are certainly keen to promote the variety of activities held there. From Scrabble and Lego sessions to access to the web and even talks about bats, there's a lot going on.

And with over 900 friends on social media, the volunteers are certainly helping spread the word.

In one of the first editions of the Morecambe Bay Podcast we heard about BOOM - Back on Our Map - a project aimed at restoring the landscape of parts of the Bay to help reintroduce and reinforce locally threatened or extinct native species.

Led by the University of Cumbria in partnership with Morecambe Bay Partnership together with Cumbria Wildlife Trust, Natural England and Forestry England it was supported by the National Lottery.

A main aim was to encourage people living locally to get involved.

You can see a video about the project.

More information on the project.

It's back for 2024!

Coming up in the next series of the Morecambe Bay Podcast we'll hear from more great guests who take candidly about their life around the Bay.

With over 100 episodes already published I'm looking forward to sharing more conversations from people you may know and many more you probably won't.

If you'd like to get involved, get in touch by using the new 'Suggest a guest' feature on the website.

Thanks for the support so far and spread the word about the podcast that's all about the Bay!

It's one of the country's best known bird reserves and 2024 will mark a significant anniversary for the RSPB's Leighton Moss.

Big things are planned to mark 60 years since it was created.

In that time it's welcomed thousands of visitors, not all feathered, and has made a big impact on many.

As a young ornithologist Jon Carter often had to rely on his older brother to drive him to the reserve; little did he know one day he'd be working for the RSPB, sharing his enthusiasm and passion for ornithology and inspiring many. He's about to move on to pastures new - a tough decision!

In this extended podcast, as you'll hear, he takes us on a tour on a day when the reserve was teeming with wildlife.

Enjoy!

From stars of stage and screen to the throngs who came to see them over the years how many thousands must have walked through the foyer of Morecambe's Winter Gardens?

Yet very few will have looked down to admire the ornate tiled flooring beneath their feet which has suffered wear and tear after decades of use.

The good news is a team of craftsman are carefully restoring the tiles. Over a five week period they've painstakingly replaced missing tiles and carefully cleaned the extensive floorwork.

Michael Rieveley is lead conservator at Rieveley Ceremics who have been carrying out the work and says the theatre is a leading example of this kind of art.

For writer and academic Noreen Masud, flatlands have always been a source of fascination. From the wide, flat field glimpsed as a child from the back seat of her father's car in Lahore to more recent discoveries including the Cambridgeshire Fens and Morecambe Bay.

The silver sands revealed during a cross Bay walk made a lasting impression on her and together with experiences elsewhere she recounts her pilgrimage around Britain's flatlands, seeking solace and belonging, in her book A Flat Place.

It's a fascinating consideration of memory, mind, painful histories and the breathtaking flatlands she has come to love.

While mountains are usually celebrated in literature and popular culture, Noreen prefers the quietening effect of flat landscapes.

Noreen Masud is a Lecturer in Twentieth Century Literature at the https://research-information.bris.ac.uk/en/persons/noreen-masudUniversity of Bristol, and an AHRC/BBC New Generation Thinker. Her research covers all kinds of bases: flatness, spivs, puppets, leftovers, earworms, footnotes, rhymes, hymns, surprises, folk songs, colours, superstitions. She works mostly on twentieth-century literature, but also makes forays into Victorian and Romantic literature too.

Dan Fox enjoys a fascinating career.

A sound artist, musician, film-maker and installation creator based in Ulverston he's responsible for creating stunning soundscapes.

This weekend his latest project, a singing drumlin celebration organised with Cumbria Wildlife Trust, takes place at Bowber Head Nature Reserve close to Ravenstonedale.

His parents ran the acclaimed Welfare State International and a childhood spent experiencing artistic events around the world inspired him to set up his own company to work on a range of amazing projects. We met up and recorded this conversation as he was about to start another piece of work involving the Boom Bikes as part of this summer's Bay Lines - Beach of Dreams project by the Morecambe Bay Partnership.