Between October 2018 and March 2021, Will Ashon collected voices – people talking about their lives, needs, dreams, loves, hopes and fears – all of them with some connection to the British Isles. He used a range of methods including letters sent to random addresses, hitchhiking, referrals from strangers and so on. He conducted the interviews in person, on the phone, over the internet or asked people to record themselves. Interview techniques ranged from asking people to tell him a secret to choosing an arbitrary question from a list.
The resulting testimonies tell the collective story of what it feels like to be alive in a particular time and place – here and now. In this Ethical Matters talk, Will explores how we give shape to our lives, find meaning in the chaos, acknowledge the fragility of our existence while alleviating this anxiety with moments of beauty, love, humour and solidarity.
Will Ashon was born in Leicester in 1969. Having worked as a music journalist, he founded the record label Big Dada Recordings in 1996, which he ran for over fifteen years, signing acts like Roots Manuva, Wiley, Diplo, Kate Tempest and Young Fathers and, in the process, winning the Mercury Music Prize twice. He also published two novels with Faber & Faber, Clear Water and The Heritage. He currently lives in Walthamstow, north east London.
Age Recommendation
16+
Price
Standard (in person) £9 • Concessions (in person) £6 • Standard (online) £6 • Members FREE
Access Information
Due to the age and Grade Il listing of the building, there is no lift access to rooms above the ground floor.
All the ground-floor rooms are fully accessible by wheelchair. Main Hall (street access, step-free), Brockway Room (street access, step-free), Bertrand Russell Room (street access, shallow ramp), Hive Cafe (street access, step-free), There is also an accessible toilet on the ground floor opposite the Brockway Room.
If you have any questions regarding your access needs, please get in touch with our team and we will accommodate as best as we can. Get in touch: info@conwayhall.org.uk
