Head along to Wembley Library for an exciting afternoon of chess, learning, and inspiration! Meet Yamile Aldama, 4-time Olympian and World Champion Gold Medalist, and discover your next move on the chessboard. This free community event is suitable for all ages – enjoy a short Q&A with Yamile, meet new people, and learn the game … Continued
Join members of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra for a relaxed lunchtime concert, to discover accessible classical music. Celebrate Black History Month with presenter Aga Serugo-Lugo and a wind quintet from the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Enjoy an inspiring programme of music by Black composers, highlighting their rich contributions to classical music from 1930 to the present … Continued
Get ready to unleash your inner performer and experience the thrill of drama and circus skills in person at Wembley Library! Build your confidence and learn acting and circus skills to deliver something magical! Help create a performance that celebrates the importance of freedom. You will be taught acting, circus and speech skills as Brent … Continued
A creative workshop exploring the theme ‘What Does Freedom Mean to Me?’ through risograph printing. Facilitated by artist Alaa Alsaraji, this session invites participants to reflect on personal and collective ideas of freedom, identity, and belonging in the context of Islamophobia, while experimenting with visual techniques in a printmaking studio setting.
A relaxed and creative coffee morning exploring the theme ‘What Does Freedom Mean to Me?’ through collage and poster making. Facilitated by artist Alaa Alsaraji, this workshop invites participants to reflect on personal and collective ideas of freedom, identity, and belonging in the context of Islamophobia, while experimenting with visual techniques.
Join former professional footballers Richard Langley and Mark Stein as they talk candidly about the changes they have see over the years, both on and off the field. Providing insight into the unique journey both athletes have taken throughout their lives, they will reflect on issues such as the impact of social media coverage on … Continued
Former track athletes, Olympic and Commonwealth Games medallists Yamilé Aldama and Connie Henry MBE discuss all facets of freedom and what it means to them, including freedom of expression, identity, and discussing whether freedom could be at risk. The audience will have the opportunity to ask questions in an interactive Q&A with both former athletes. … Continued
If the history of women’s football in the UK were made into a film, it might resemble a dramatic story: a powerful, confident new train racing forward, while anxious railway executives, threatened by this emerging force, desperately try to tear up the tracks ahead. Join Phil Vasili as he discusses the rise of women’s football, … Continued
What does freedom mean to us today? This year marks 80 years since VE Day, and across the country people are reflecting on freedom – past and present – through stories, creativity, and community. In Deptford, a place rich with history, culture, and everyday acts of resilience, the Albany has been working with students from … Continued
Roots of Our Freedom is a vibrant intergenerational arts project bringing together young people and elders from Newham to explore identity, ancestry, and lived experiences through creative expression. Through mindfulness art, planting, embroidery, photography, and cutting-edge virtual reality, participants will co-create powerful artworks and recordings that reflect the threads of heritage and the shared journey … Continued
Visit this exhibition created with community members in Burnt Oak and the surrounding areas, exploring ideas and thoughts on freedom through personal stories and shared histories. Weaving together the past and the present, To Us It Means looks at the journey of resilience, care and solidarity within these communities. Through the mediums of photography, archival … Continued
Step back in time at Willesden Green Library with a special World War II handling and coffee morning session. Explore real wartime objects, share stories, and discover the everyday experiences of people during the Second World War. This relaxed and welcoming session is a chance to connect with history over a cup of tea or … Continued
Muriel lived on the Preston Park estate in the 1930s, and stayed in touch with several neighbours there after she moved away. She kept the letters which she received from her friends Nancie and Doris during the Second World War, and these were donated to Wembley History Society in 2020. Join Philip Grant, from the … Continued
As the world was recovering from the Second World War, the first Olympic Games for twelve years would help to bring people back together in friendship, and it was Wembley which played host to them in the summer of 1948. Join Philip Grant, from Wembley History Society, for this richly illustrated talk which tells the … Continued
As part of the national project, Our Freedom: Then and Now, Watermans has commissioned artist Anna Jochymek to invite Polish women in Hounslow to share their personal stories, reflect on their migration experiences, and take part in creating a powerful portrait of the local community. Free.Her explores what freedom means to women today, through their … Continued
Join Stanley Arts for a FREE evening of food, conversation and gentle creative activities that will help you to get to know your neighbours. There will also be performances from cutting edge professional artists. This event is part of Stanley Arts’ Our Freedom project, a series of creative gatherings exploring what freedom means to the … Continued
Join Stanley Arts for a FREE evening of food, conversation and gentle creative activities that will help you to get to know your neighbours. There will also be performances from cutting edge professional artists. This event is part of Stanley Arts’ Our Freedom project, a series of creative gatherings exploring what freedom means to the … Continued
Join Stanley Arts for a FREE evening of spoken word, food, conversation and gentle creative activities that will help you to get to know your neighbours. This Community Supper Social will be hosted by poet Shaniqua Benjamin who will be performing some of her work. Published by Ink, Sweat & Tears and Magma, Shaniqua was … Continued
Presented by JW3, Our Freedom: Then and Now is a compelling exhibition and podcast created by a cohort of young artists and professionals. This unique project explores how the legacy of the Holocaust continues to shape subsequent generations through personal stories, creativity, and reflection. The Exhibition The exhibition showcases original artistic expressions created in collaboration … Continued
Join JW3 for an inspiring evening as they launch Our Freedom: Then and Now, a compelling exhibition and podcast created by a cohort of young artists and professionals. This unique project explores how the legacy of the Holocaust continues to shape subsequent generations through personal stories, creativity, and reflection. The exhibition showcases original artistic expressions … Continued
Join a conversation launching Newham’s Our Freedom: Then & Now programme, marking 80 years since the end of World War Two. Historian Shrabani Basu (a journalist and Sunday Times best-selling author focusing on the hidden stories thrown up by 200 years of British rule in India) and writer Diya Gupta (a literary and cultural historian … Continued
Join Dr Diya Gupta who will deliver a talk on the Bengal famine of 1943, which occurred in the Bengal province of British India (present-day Bangladesh, West Bengal and eastern India) during World War 2. Dr Gupta is a literary and cultural historian interested in how visual culture, life-writing and literature respond to war, and … Continued
Woolwich Centre Library invites you to step back in time and explore the powerful legacy of Woolwich in war and peace. Local artists Lucia Collelo and Stuart Lee will unveil a stunning new artwork inspired by Woolwich’s remarkable role in the war effort and explore what freedom means in today’s world, while local historian Richard … Continued
A powerful new exhibition inspired by Woolwich’s remarkable role in the war effort takes centre stage as local artists Lucia Collelo and Stuart Lee unveil a striking new artwork that explores the meaning of freedom in today’s world. Through bold ideas and imaginative visuals, their work brings local history vividly to life and invites viewers … Continued
From their base in one of the most diverse areas of the UK, Newham Libraries will be celebrating the contributions of the South Asian community in the Second World War, allowing the community to commemorate their achievements, as well as collecting memories and memorabilia for the wider public and future generations. Local community groups will … Continued
Woolwich played a vital role in the war effort, serving as a hub for munitions production and home to thousands who contributed to the Allied cause. Now, they will explore what freedom means to the people of Woolwich – both in the present and for future generations. In partnership with Woolwich Library, and with the … Continued
The Jason Roberts Foundation (JRF) supported the delivery of four community events in collaboration with Brent Libraries, Culture and Heritage as part of the Our Freedom: Then and Now project. These events were made possible through collaborative community funding following a UK Government grant awarded via Arts Council England. JRF’s role centred on community engagement, coordination and … Continued
Freedom has always been central to the story of Bracknell – from its beginnings as a New Town in 1949 to the opportunities it continues to offer today. As part of the Our Freedom: Then and Now project, Bracknell Forest Libraries explored the theme of freedom through the iconic trees of the borough, using them … Continued
Stanley Arts delivered a series of community workshops in Croydon, exploring the question of what freedom means today. Using Freedom Road by Simon Armitage as a starting point, participants engaged in facilitated, closed‑group conversations with community partners. The aim was to bridge intergenerational and intercultural divides by creating space for honest reflection on a theme … Continued
Our Freedom: Then and Now was a creative, intergenerational project exploring what freedom means eighty years after the liberation of Europe. Delivered at JW3 as part of a national initiative led by Future Arts Centres, the project brought together 20 young Jewish adults aged approximately 20–35 to reflect on inherited memory, identity, and responsibility through … Continued
Shaped by the people of Burnt Oak, home to a rich tapestry of communities, including a strong Nepalese presence rooted in the ex-Gurkha community, as well as long-standing Jewish and Irish populations, and more recently, Romanian communities, artsdepot in London will collaborate on a series of a series of inclusive and participatory workshops which will … Continued
Inspired by the Castellars of Barcelona, the Albany worked with students from the National Centre for Circus Arts to create a celebration of balance, resilience and community spirit. Following workshops with local secondary school students exploring what freedom means to young people in Deptford today, the Albany hosted a community celebration during October Half Term. Shoulders of Giants was a … Continued
Inviting Polish women in Hounslow to share their personal stories, reflect on their migration experiences, and take part in creating a powerful portrait of the local community, Watermans will lead on a project exploring what freedom means to women today, through their own words, histories, and identities. They will work with artist and ethnographer Anna … Continued