BBC Telling Lives Showcase Film Screening 8th November 2003 Quality Royal Hotel, Ferensawy, Hull By Cilla

Since January the BBC Telling Lives team has been helping local people from the Humber region tell their real-life stories and turn them into short films that are broadcast by the BBC.

Some are deeply moving, some funny, some quirky - and each one is unique to the storyteller - they are 'stories no one else can tell'. Well this had me intrigued from the start - just my cup of tea. A bit like a dream come true. Diaries. Real stories.

Nothing was going to stop me going to this event. And quite an event it turned out to be, too. This is such a brilliant idea. It's a real way to empower people, to really face things, to really share things. Its education and therapy rolled into one, I am certain, for everyone.

We stepped downstairs into the Winston Suite at the Quality Royal Hotel, Ferensway to be received into a large 100 seater auditorium open space with tables and chairs hosting food and drinks (as only the BBC can!). At first glance it was difficult to figure out who and where these people came from - just about every type you can imagine seated themselves comfortably and eagerly awaited the show.

It was Rupert Creed who introduced us to the evening's schedule of events with an extremely warm and relaxed manner, as if he knew us all.

It wasn't long before I found out that he did, in fact know most of the people in the room and had probably instructed them all individually. The audience was, in fact, mainly participants in this BBC venture at a pre-screening session of their own video workshops. After the inevitable pre-ramble advertising from the BBC, the screening of 20 plus short films began.

It was fascinating. The team from the BBC selected 2 examples from each workshop - each carried out in a different part of the region. The screening also included stories produced in conjunction with the BBC current World War Two theme.

Some of the stories were funny, some just so touching, you really felt like you needed a hanky. The stories ranged from remembering close relatives who died in the Twin Towers tragedy to a young womans passion for the Rocky Horror Show. Each one was a surprise and the entire screening was thoroughly enjoyable. A treasure chest of human experience. One story showed the destruction caused by the North Sea to a womans entire life. Coastal erosion would soon claim another tragic victims home.

It was a bonus to be able to see the very people who had obviously worked so hard to produce their story. Some very brave people, too. This must be one of the most powerful ways to tell a true life story. The participants can actually narrate it themselves. That makes it so very special. And you could feel the atmosphere of warmth in the room between the participants and the people who helped them produce their works. I am sure that some very special relationships have been forged during this project.

The future of Telling Lives is uncertain. As always, funding is the main issue. There is never enough money to stretch into keeping these projects going. Apparently some funding is available but not for the BBC - so community groups would have to adopt the project in order to gain the facilities to continue. I was left a little unclear as to the exact situation and I think it deserves some investigation.

Visit the website: www.bbc.co.uk/tellinglives Send an email: humber@bbc.co.uk or Lancashire@bbc.co.uk Phone: Humber: 01482 621420 Lancashire: 01254 841056

Continued on www.thisisull.com...... The Humber Mouth Homepage.

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