Tract cells

No matter the game, no matter the job, no matter the prisoner’s status, the predominant experience of daily life in prison was one of boredom.12

Interpretation framework

Tract cells Boredom

Narrative arc: Rising action

The tract cells included prisoners who had escaped from custody, attempted to escape, been violent, involved in inciting riots or generally caused trouble. This space became the intractable prisoners’ outside space, as they would move between their cell and these cages. Prisoners were at times permitted to bring books, a deck of cards or a tennis ball into this space. But the predominant experience of ‘the cage’ would have been boredom like other parts of the Gaol—except that in addition it ‘got colder than hell in the winter, and hotter than hell in the summer.’

Interpretive concepts

Experience 1 (Group)

Guided tour point

The tract cells are a part of the tour that can be explained perfectly by the guide, highlighting the built environment and boredom of the prisoners in these cells.

Key audience: Family groups, school groups, over 55s

Experience 2 (Group)

Tract cells

Characters: Cell heavy

Story: The experience of endless hours inside a tract cell.

Key audience: Family groups, school groups, over 55s

Suggested devices:

• Interaction/participation—tactile props Use props such as a tennis ball or a half-finished game of patience.

• Audio—immersive soundscape: Tennis ball being thrown against a wall. Include wind/rain, sounds of other prisoners in the main exercise yard.

• Built & movable heritage: The tract cells are an imposing environment that allows the visitor to explore and imagine what it would’ve felt like to be trapped inside while you heard other prisoners in the main exercise yard.

Interpretation framework