I walk. A lot. I walk along the Promenade, saying hello to everyone I pass by and commenting on the weather (the wind). Occasionally, someone will want to tell me something amazing that happened to them while living by the sea. Or something beautiful in The Bay that only happens once in while. Sometimes someone will want to tell me about something life-changing that will happen here one day.
My day to day interactions on the prom have inspired a new project that me and my friend and fellow artist Chris have called Promenade! (Everybody’s Free). We’ve both been walking a lot during lockdown. We’ve been trying to keep fit, trying to keep our minds off it, trying to enjoy the outdoors without distraction and even trying to think about a different way of living. We have enjoyed being on our own. The project is going to celebrate the time that we have on our own. We are going to create a series of walking tours of the promenade, to be played on headphones, that will keep us fit and will help us to think about our surroundings in a different way. I’m also going to write some music that will score the tours and the pulse of the music will form the steps that we take on each journey. We can’t do this project on our own! In addition to our voices that tell you where to go and what to consider, we need to also hear the experiences, stories and ideas for the future of local residents. We would like it if people could record their contributions into their phones and send them to us. Or we could call each other and then I could record our conversation. Or we could even get together for a socially distanced walk and record them right in The Bay.
Walk number one will go down Yorkshire Street up to The Alhambra and hear about the entertainment and retail history of The West End. It will go down the prom to the end of the Stone Jetty for a moment of relaxation before it returns to West Street. It will be around 4000 steps and 40 minutes. Walk number two will walk up to Heysham and hear about the glorious Sunny Slopes of days gone by. It will go through the village to The Barrows for an epic breather before coming back to The West End. It will be around 8000 steps and 80 minutes.
The walks will be designed to be a genuine exercise whether that be as a one-off experience or as a daily ritual. For people who are less confident with the pace, we’ll also create a version without the beat. If you think you have something to contribute to any part of these walks please talk to us! We cannot do this without your help!
To get involved please email angelclubnorth@live.com. We cannot wait to hear your stories and make some new connections.
Blog By Phil Sykes
Phil recently moved to Heysham in November and given Angel Club (north)’s rich history of working in the bay, has ambitions to get involved in creative projects in the local community to improve engagement in arts provision. He has enjoyed spending time talking to neighbours, colleagues and new friends since moving here and is excited by the ambitions and ethos of Creative West End.