Audio tour of town aims to tell its 'real stories'

Fin Kennedy with the cast of "Seeing Clearly", a community audio story, Elizabeth Badu (left), Saundra Glenn, and Daysha Badu

A new audio walking tour aims to tell the "real stories, of anything and everything" about a diverse town.

Fin Kennedy said Luton's Museum of Stories will be a mixture of memories, life experiences and recollections from the Bury Park area.

A phone line has been set up for people to call and leave a message about what they want to share.

About 12 of the experiences will be made into a five-minute "audio art gallery" that can be played via an app for anyone who walks along Dunstable Road.

Fin Kennedy, from Applies Stories, worked with Saundra Glenn on "Seeing Clearly"

Mr Kennedy said it was about getting a "mixture of memories, life experiences and things people recalled happening in the area".

It was being co-produced by Applied Stories and Shemiza Rashid, with support from co-writer Titilola Dawudu.

"It's real stories about anything and everything.

"It's amazing how detailed and honest people are and what they will say to an answer machine."

The stories will be "polished and made into a script", with the support of professional writers.

People will be able to walk down Dunstable Road, in the Bury Park area and hear between 10 and 12 stories

In a pilot, Saundra Glenn's story was made into a 15-minute drama called Seeing Clearly.

It recalled how affluent Bury Park was in the 1960s and how she got her first pair of glasses aged seven.

She said she was "delighted" to be involved in the "fascinating" project.

"Being able to share my late mother's amazing persona and impact on Luton as a Windrush Generation migrant made it all the more special to me," she said.

"The result was a quality piece of audio drama capturing that moment in time."

Saundra Glenn, with her new glasses aged seven, was happy to share her story

"It's not a history or heritage project, so we might tweak, or change them to make them more compelling" St Albans-based Mr Kennedy said.

The audio will have sound effects and music added and will appear as a 'pin' on a app.

He said Dunstable Road was chosen to celebrate its "independent spirit".

A listening event took place for people to hear stories people had already shared

Stories already shared included one by former youth activistFahim Quershi who explained how a he had been mobilised to protect Luton Central mosque from the National Front in the 1980s and 90s.

Lee Bowman, an ex-soldier and Luton FC fan, spoke about how he changed his "prejudiced" views about Islam after spending time abroad.

He now does anti-radicalisation work.

A ghost story about a paradoxically happy little girl who haunts Allders opticians, now known as Alexandra Opticians, was told by its clinical director, Dr Nizam Alvi.

A listening event in Alexandra Opticians, formerly Allders in Luton

Stories can be left on the special phone line until the end of April.

The project was funded by Arts Council England and was backed by Revolution Arts and Luton Borough Council’s Curating Luton: place-making project.

Fin Kennedy said he was excited to hear the stories being shared