Invisible Folk
Invisible Folk is a not for profit organisation dedicated to providing grass roots creatives with a platform to make new work in partnership with heritage and arts organisations. We aim to give voice to marginalised communities and point out the role of folk song in the lives of ordinary people.
The Invisible Folk Walking Tour of Bedford High Street
Some people get left out of history books. Sometimes it is women and girls, descendants of immigrants, members of the LGBTQ community, people living with disability in body or mind. In creating this walking tour of Bedford High Street we sought out those voices. That meant that D/disabled, Caribbean and Lesbian people all described Nelson Mandela's visit in 2000 and provided many other stories of this historic town which is home to many communities. We interviewed Italians, Poles, people from the black community, the LGBTQ community, people living with disability, British people, historians and museum curators. We interviewed Special Constables, members of the territorial army, artists in glass, musicians and singers, writers, carers, radio broadcasters and cooks. We then edited it down to make a coherent story. This tour is available on the IZI travel app and it was made in partnership with Bedford Borough Council and their High Street Heritage Action Zone Project, The Higgins Bedford and most of all the people of Bedford.
Our Partners
Lacemakers United
I wrote a play called The Lacemaker's Answer for this project We also commissioned Gemma Khawaja and Catherine Earnshaw to join me in making new settings for traditional Bedfordshire Folk songs and for Lace Tells.
About Us
Invisible Folk
Jon Bickley and Steve Yarwood