digital:works Podcast

Bend It, Shape It - Episode 2

August 31, 2020 digital:works Season 4 Episode 2
digital:works Podcast
Bend It, Shape It - Episode 2
Show Notes

An Oral History of Boatyard Workers on the Tidal Thames.

In Episode two we explore the skills, pride and joy, as well as the pain of working on boats; the business of running a boatyard; their decline on the Thames and the future of those that remain.

The Thames has been the lifeblood of London since Roman times.

And boats that have plied its waters have been built and maintained by skilled workers since then.

We have interviewed workers that have worked in various boatyards along the river from the Thames Barrier in the East to Teddington in the west.

Working with wood, steel, paint, saws, planes and blow torches, these are the stories of the men who have kept London afloat.

The interviews were collected as part of the Thames Festival Trust’s Working River Project, produced by digital-works.

This podcast was funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.