Serial Culture Issue 3 by Serial Culture

Exploring the lives and art of young people in Halton

Serial

JULY 2021

CULTURE

CULTURE HQ / NATALIE MCCOOL - FLIGHT 2 / O.X. COLLECTIVE / ELECTRIC DREAMS / WANDERLUST / FILM REVIEW + Much more! 1 ISSUE THREE

Seri @lary_the_dinosaur

Here's this month's Lary. Gerard Way dinosaur -Charlotte

04 Cover Art 06 Community Talks - National Volunteer Week 08 Culture HQ/Draw on Halton 12 LCR Spotlight - Flight Three 14 Wanderlust 16 Activ E&E Street Voice 18 The Scarlet Watch - Elkie Atherton 20 Hygiene Poverty 22 O.X. Collective 24 The Great Get Together 28 Culture Pigeon -Electric Dreams 30 Community Talks - Halton Housing 32 Halton High Street Art Competition 34 The Birth of Goldenarm 38 Serial Kindness

Editorial Advisory Team Editorial Team Facilitator - Meg DeMar Designer - Greg Oldfield The Studio Project Manager - Louise Nulty

COVER ART

Hunter Tyghe I am 20 and based in Widnes. How long have you been creating art? Since before I can remember really, I've always been drawn to doing anything and everything I can that’s artistic/creative from a really young age. I used art to express myself, communicate how I was feeling when I couldn’t quite find the words and most importantly get lost in the process of each and every piece I created to avoid the chaos of the world around me throughout my whole life so far up until this day. How did you first get into it? Even As a kid drawing was something I spent at least a couple of hours every day doing, simply because I just loved it so much! It was around the age of 11-12 my obsession with the tattoo industry started. Something about the art of tattooing drew me in as soon as I was aware of what a tattoo was and how such amazing pieces of art can become part of a person for the rest of their life. It was from the age of 13 I knew tattooing was what I needed to do with my passion for art and I practised learning about different styles and drawing every day as much as I could.

What training do you have? I studied art in both high school and college getting A* Gcse and DD in level 3 art and design. I then while in the final months of college started my journey as a tattoo apprentice, I remained an apprentice for 2 years until I had the knowledge/skill to tattoo full time as a junior tattoo artist.

What media/ software do you use? At the moment I've been using the more traditional method of paper with my tattoo designs and I mainly use watercolour paper with black colour pencil. I also use a digital software called procreate for any custom/symmetrical designs.

What is the inspiration / for this piece/ piece's? I have a fascination with anything dark and gruesome, the concept of taxidermy is something that inspires me, in a sense of appreciating the life of something past its life if that makes any sense? As well as it being a physical piece of art to admire. I find it much like the art of tattooing since tattoos are carried with you throughout the rest of your life and each one was at a different point in your life, holding different memories and the permanency lets them live on forever What are the aims for your art? To give people confidence and express themselves through their own skinsuit. Where can people find you on social media? Instagram and Facebook @Huntertyghetattoos.

National Volunteer WeeK COMMUNITY TALKS

The beginning of June marked the start of National Volunteer Week in England – a week that is really quite dear to me. In mid 2018, I began volunteering at The Studio as part of the criteria for the Duke of Edinburgh award, helping on a weekly basis at the now infamous local guitar jam.

I was incredibly apprehensive at first (a lot of nerve induced histrionics in the car and plenty of pacing back and forth outside The Studio’s notoriously finicky front door, which I still sometimes struggle with to this day), but as soon as I arrived and was greeted by the staff and fellow volunteers I immediately felt like part of the team.

Playing music in a communal setting was totally alien to me before this - I had always felt myself inferior to my contemporaries in school as I knew nothing about music theory, so helping out on a weekly basis teaching guitar massively boosted my confidence and, by proxy, totally enhanced my passion for music! On top of that, I’ve helped with a wide range of incredibly fun events put on at the venue - becoming house DJ at Halton Comic Cons and gigs, Gig videographer for local bands and revered cinematographer of ‘The Great Get Together’, as well as an Open Mic Host for the online ‘Gig In Your Gallery’, which has massively improved my confidence not only as a singer, but as a host for events of all natures.

I’ve made some genuinely great friends for life at The Studio, who I feel incredibly grateful for. In light of this, I spoke to Matt Roberts at the Halton and St. Helens Volunteer Centre to answer some questions young people might have about volunteering! Why should you start volunteering? The obvious and boring answer to this is that volunteering looks good on your CV. And it does! It’s certainly something you can talk about in interviews for jobs or further education establishments. However, the main reason people should volunteer is that it’s amazing and lots of fun: you get to meet awesome people who care about their local community & make brilliant friends; you’ll be doing something constructive that makes a positive difference in the lives of people from your community; you’ll feel proud and valued and that you’ve given something back to the community you’re a part of - it’s a real buzz and one that you won’t get bored of!

What can volunteering entail? There are hundreds of different voluntary organisations in Halton, working in different fields & genres. It might be a good idea to ask yourself what kind of work you are interested in - is it supporting young people or children? Working with people with disabilities? Maybe it’s helping older people or animals? You could look for groups based upon what you’re passionate about. Alternatively, you might feel inspired by a specific topic such as food poverty, access to the arts/sports or a geographical community and search for a group based on that. How can young people get involved in volunteering? By visiting this website (https://volunteering.haltonsthelensvca.org.uk/vk/volunteers/index.htm) you will be able to see a number of different voluntary opportunities advertised by the team at Volunteer Centre Halton. If you identify a group with which you would like to volunteer that isn’t promoting opportunities through our website, simply contact them directly. They’d be delighted to hear from you! Nearly all Halton voluntary organisations have a geographical base, so you might be asked to volunteer there, though some roles may be completed online, so you might though be able to volunteer from the comfort of your own home! Volunteering has opened a whole world of opportunities for me - it is the sole reason I was able to get involved in Serial Culture in the first place, which has been easily one of the most rewarding experiences of my life so far; to anyone who is interested in volunteering, I would highly recommend you do it – I guarantee it will make an incredible impact on your life!

Ben Cooper

CULTURE HQ

Draw on Halton was a project created by Hazlehurst Studios to encourage local residents and professional artists to create and connect, during the first national lockdown. Hazlehurst Studios created an outdoor exhibition of that work, which is still on display at the Old Town Bloom Garden, within Runcorn Old Town. After the success of the first project, Hazlehurst Studios included a second Draw on Halton project, within their Research and Development grant from Arts Council England, to help connect and inspire local creatives further, and start a conversation about visual art. They provided prompts on a bi-weekly basis via their social media accounts, and shared the work in progress, as the project developed. You can see all the work on the blog section of their website. The prompts for this exhibition were Soap, Perform, Nature, Buildings, People, Clouds, Water, Travel and Streets. Creating

connections was at the heart of the Draw on Halton project and they would love for you to connect with the project further. If you feel inspired or wish to give your own thoughts on the prompts, or visual art as whole, then please feel free to create art within the Mark Making zones or share with them via social media. They would love to see and hear your ideas. Hazlehurst studios have been working with Riverside College for the past year to create an Industry Placement program that offers students a real insight into what life is like as an artist, as well as working within an artist led organisation. As part of Hazlehurst Studio’s Research and Development project, funded by Arts Council England, they offered a further two work experience placements to students.

The successful work experience candidates then worked with the two Artistic Leads on this project, who are Claire Pitt and Rachael Prime. The students have worked with Hazlehurst Artists to develop and curate this exhibition, working with the professional artists they gained new skills and developing a different perspective for their own work. This included developing the prompts that inspired the artwork, which were created during conversations about what inspires the students about Halton. Despite only being able to meet remotely for the majority of their placement, Hazlehurst Studios have been so impressed by what the students have been able to achieve and how they have embraced the opportunity. Hazlehurst Studios wants to provide hands-on experience, of different creative careers, for Halton’s students,

showcasing the many different pathways a creative practitioner can take in their career. They would love to hear from Halton’s young people, if they think this work experience programme would help them to discover their own creative career paths. If you would like to find out more about work experience and volunteering opportunities within an arts organisation, then head over to contact section of Hazlehurst Studios website: www.hazlehurststudios.co.uk Claire Pitt

A note from the editor - Serial Culture has an Exhibition running at Culture HQ from 8th July to 24th July! Pop in Thur - Sat 10 - 2 to see our giant zine articles and covers from the first 3 issues.

CULTURE HQ

Hello all! So today I’m writing about this amazing exhibition in Runcorn’s Shopping City. The artwork speaks much higher volumes than I could ever write, and it is just so beautiful. I love how each piece speaks to the admirer as if it were alive. In this exhibition, you’ll find charcoal drawings, sculptures, and many different types of colour portraits and landscapes.

Some beautiful photography work as well, watercolours, computer graphics, even comics! All done in the finest detail. As a lover of all things creative, I was rewarded by this tremendous experience.

Most of the artwork was completed by Halton’s college students in partnership with Hazelhurst Studios. They have been working to create an Industry Placement program for students to work with artists. Funded by Arts Council England, Hazelhurst Studios provided work experience placements to students.

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CORYNNEDITTRICH One of my favourite pieces was a dragon that, according to the description, I believe came to her grandmother in a dream. Now, I’m not going to say too much, but I am going to say you are so brave and you deserve the best! This piece really moved me. There was also this beautiful painting made with pebbles and stones. I thought it was the most creative and out-of-the-box artwork I’ve ever seen, I loved it. And the pop art too! Well done. I feel that the world should get to know these young students’ work. It’s amazing how young people are coming off their video games and making art for others to experience. In times like these, you can barely get a “hello” or a “good morning” from your young person. I should know, I’m one of those students! Ha ha. But it’s amazing to see students my age loving making people happy and enjoying making art. There was also some exceptionally fine artwork from the little ones! Kids of all ages have been able to come in and try their hand at drawing something and they have a special place just for their art on the wall with the others.

Another piece I really loved was by artist Simon Jones. It is definitely one of my favourite pieces because of the amazing use of colour. Words cannot properly describe it. I definitely feel everyone should go see these exhibitions. More will be coming every month. Well done, everyone, you should be proud of yourselves. And for all of you who haven’t seen it, please go to the Shopping City, near the British Heart Foundation by car park 3, to see this incredible art. Thanks for reading! Love, Cookie

Cookie 11

LOOSE COMMUNITY RECORDS TAKES FLIGHT! Loose Community Records (LCR) have been hard at work this month releasing their second in a collection of five releases, Flight. After Flight 1 dropped last month and was received with much praise, members of the community were excited for the second release. Flight 2 featured local artists such as Mondegreen, Junior Davies and Natalie McCool, as well as volunteers at The Studio such as John Bostock and Kelly Creswell. Bostock said “It’s been great to be part of this project and interesting to see how the process works. From the technicalities of recording a song, the information that’s needed to accompany the song and finally the promotion of the record has been a steep learning curve for all involved.” Each Flight release is a mix of people who have at some point had The Studio be an important part of their life, for example Natalie McCool who has had the building intrinsically linked to her music, McCool says. Q: What is your history with The Studio?A: “I started going to the Saturday Feedback sessions at The Studio when I was about 14, when I first started playing guitar and writing my own songs. I remember you’d just turn up and you had the opportunity to jam with other people or do your own thing. It was great to have a space to do that, away from my bedroom, and make new friends and kind of get into the scene that way. The big gigs every month really were the highlight of the month, not just because you got to play a gig, but socially too. Everyone was there, from Widnes and Runcorn so it was like this big social event too!!! I also came back and played some gigs and did some industry panels at The Studio, which was ace to come back there. I also recorded a music video there!”

LOOSE Community Records Q: What inspired you to pursue music? A: I remember seeing Top of the Pops as a kid and just thought bouncing around on the stage playing music looked like so much fun. My dad played guitar so we always had guitar lying round the house, in particular a really nice Spanish acoustic that my granddad brought back from Spain, which I learned to play on. I’ve always been interested in songs - lyrics and melodies and the way both together makes you feel. I remember being aware of these things from a very young age, wanting to sing and play and ‘figure out’ what this feeling was and how to make it myself. Q: Where do you see your music going? A: That’s an abstract one! Anywhere and everywhere it can possibly go. I love playing live and want to tour my new album all around the UK and Europe, me and my band are itching to do that. I want my music to appear on screen synced with TV and film! I already had a sync on The Third Day trailer with Sky Atlantic recently and that was just so, so mega, hearing my track just match perfectly with the mood and story. I’d love to work on more of that. JAMES SWIFT Find Flight compilations at: Loosecommunityrecords.com

What's Happening in Halton?

As we are all well aware, travelling has been limited to the local area for the best part of the past year. Whilst this was disappointing for those who had international trips planned, it gave us the chance to explore the places closer to home that we often overlook. During the month of March I set myself the challenge of walking 10,000 steps every day to raise money for Cancer Research, and this led me to exploring areas of Halton that I never even knew existed! Now that the weather is picking up and people are spending more time outside I have written a list of my favourite places in Halton for you to explore for yourself. Spike Island: as a Stone Roses fan, Spike Island has always been somewhat of a mythical spot for me. Whilst I wasn’t alive when the band performed their legendary show, I can imagine the incredible atmosphere and amazing time that was had there back in May of 1990. As I live in Runcorn, I like to walk across the Silver Jubilee Bridge to Spike Island in Widnes and spend some time walking around the trails and feeding the congregation of swans that live there all year round. You can even grab a coffee and snack at the clubhouse and stroll along the banks of the Mersey Estuary as the sun sets behind the Mersey Gateway Bridge. Wigg Island: being a nature lover and long-time twitcher, Wigg Island is one of my favourite spots in Runcorn to take a picnic and spend the day nature watching. With numerous walking trails, hides looking out onto the Mersey and plenty of grassy spots to bask in the sun, Wigg Island is a great place to spend the day with family, friends or your canine companions.

Runcorn Hill: there are almost infinite ways to navigate around Runcorn Hill and you could spend all day following the trails that interconnect and cross over each other, making for a day full of adventure and exploration. Perfect for a quick walk or full day hike, Runcorn Hill is also home to hundreds of species of animals and plants that photograph beautifully. Bridgewater Canal: the Bridgewater Canal stretches all the way from Runcorn to Manchester to Leigh. The canal used to connect to the River Mersey, but has since been cut off by a new slip road to the Silver Jubilee Bridge. The Runcorn section of the canal reaches for miles and is the perfect place for water and barge boat lovers to explore. Home to numerous species of water birds, the hatching of babies in the springtime made for an uplifting and heart-warming day out, seeing nature in action. Victoria Park: Victoria Park in Widnes is the perfect place to socialise with friends and treat yourself to a milkshake or ice cream. Great for walking all year round, the park is a great place in the summer to sit and relax in the sun with a picnic. There is also an abundance of events that are hosted in the park, so be sure to keep an eye out for things to do during the summer! I hope this has inspired you to get out and explore the local area around Halton. We would love to hear about your adventures - if you have any stories, favourite places or photographs you can send them in to serialculturezine@gmail.com!

ActivEngagement & Education CIC

Street Voice was a rap and beatbox project that took place with young people on the streets and in the parks of Widnes. Funded by the Ragdoll Foundation and led by ActivEngagement & Education CIC which was funded at the time by Halton Borough Council (HBC) and the national Lottery Community Fund. The Street Voice Project involved professional rap and beatbox artist, Jay Lyons, working alongside experienced detached and outreach youth workers. Not only did Jay freestyle rap including words, phrases and lyrics performed or given to him by young people who participated, he led beatbox and music production workshops and recorded sounds from young people from which he is producing professional tracks that will be uploaded onto sound cloud for those young people to hear back.

STREET VOICE

The project engaged over a hundred young people, many of whom had not taken part in a youth worker led project in the past and during a time when Covid-19 restrictions meant there was very little for them to do. Jay will finish production on the tracks contributed to by the young people later this week. "We want to get Jay back", said one sixteen year old after the project had completed ."He was entertaining. It was fun rapping; sick using the loop", said one sixteen year old after the project had completed ."He was entertaining. It was fun rapping; sick using the loop", said another.

activ.eecic@gmail.com

The Half Of It: Rom coms are catching up to modern love.

Happy Pride Month! The review this month is of the critically acclaimed Netflix original rom com, The Half of It. I hope you enjoy it and if you would like to watch it you can watch it on Netflix and find the trailer on both Netflix and YouTube. This is another change of pace for the review, and I know rom-coms are not really everyone’s cup of tea – some of the rom coms of the past are now incredibly problematic but some still live in our hearts like many other major movie genres – but this is a really funny and incredibly well written movie that I think a lot of people will enjoy especially with the queer representation.

Finally, a movie that respects the com bit of rom-com. Yay! This film is so heart-warming and incredibly quotable. I know it’s cliché, but I am not lying when I tell you it made me both laugh and cry. Incredibly likable characters and a mixture of sweet, awkward and heartbreaking scenes make this film very relatable. We can forgive that all the leads are in fact 6 or 7 years older than their characters because of the amazing arcs. The film touches on being queer in the eyes of the church, acceptance, family pressure and expectations, and what love really means. You’ll find yourself thinking about this film in the days to come. Essentially it is a sweet film to watch when you’re feeling a bit down and should be a model for romantic comedies everywhere.

This film is set in the small town of Squahamish and follows Ellie Chu, played by Leah Lewis, a high school senior who runs a business writing essays for her fellow students. Ellie is hired by Paul Munsky, played by Daniel Diemer, to help him write a love letter to Aster Flores, played by Alexxis Lemire. But, as Ellie and Paul’s relationship grows, so do Ellie’s feelings for Aster. The messy reality of love and Ellie, Aster and Paul’s complicated relationships with their respective families is at the forefront of the movie’s plot. A story about best friends, first loves and finding who you are and who you want to be, this movie is a must watch. It is directed and written by Alice Wu and also stars Wolfgang Novogratz, Colin Chou and Becky Ann Baker.

This film spreads the muchneeded message that acceptance is key and easy. The characters’ journeys show it’s ok to not know who you are and to keep on growing. This new kind of rom com does not force anything on these young characters and unhealthy relationships are not romanticised. People don’t get together after a five second infatuation like in other older films. It shows an actual fully fledged, developed and better-for-theevents-of-the-film nice guy. Most “nice guy” characters actually suck (for example Ross Geller from Friends or Tom Hansen from 500 Days of Summer, among others) but Paul is nice. He goes through a lot of growing up and acceptance in the time frame of this movie and ends up a better person.

The Scarlet Watch from Elkie Atherton Another Scarlet Watch tick box that this film checks is the subversion of the ‘bury your gays’ trope. Our queer representation does not end in tragedy. Whoop!

Ok, so time to take off my film analysis brain because I think feelings are good too. I loved it. The sweet and extremely well written screenplay brings this beautiful story to life. The acting is amazing and made me really relate to all the characters. The abundance of charm made me feel that warm, cosy feeling that creates a nostalgia linked to a piece of media. This film is definitely one that confirms Netflix’s talent with rom coms and I can’t wait for the next steps in the career of Alice Wu, Leah Lewis and Daniel Diemer. So, overall I would say this is a great film and has a brilliant cast and production troop. It is insanely relatable, sweet, funny and heart-warming. This film will leave you beaming, and I really hope after reading this you’ll find some kind of mental break in the arms of this movie. So have a lovely pride month and remember to stay safe and keep on nerding

POVERTY

HYGIENE

It is estimated that over 14 million people in the UK live in poverty, with two thirds of those within that definition being in work. Often those who resort to going to food banks have long before given up buying toiletries as, similar to period products, companies have marketed them as luxury goods. The Widnes Hygiene bank emerged in October 2020 regarding the surplus demand from local organisations during lockdown; joining the nationwide project to one day ensure access to essential hygiene products for everyone. As a grassroots campaign, the social movement is propelled by community togetherness to remove injustices to low-income members of our society. Currently The Women’s Centre in Runcorn and the Nightstop Homeless Charity are collaborating with the Widnes branch along with local schools and activist groups to provide individuals and educate on the basic need for hygiene products.

Many take for granted the purchasing of necessities such as period products, shampoo, toothpaste and deodorant whenever we require them. However, those scraping by to pay rent, bills and food will often relinquish these types of hygiene and self care products as they’re perceived as unnecessary luxuries. People are left destitute with little to no support when left financially unstable from illness, disability or loss of job. The pandemic rendering many people redundant and jobless, those on zero-hour contracts being the most precarious, has heightened demand for local hygiene banks and volunteers. There is an illusion of choice for those living in stark poverty, feeding families usually being the first priority. Mothers especially tend to have greater concern over feeding their children, whereas teens and young adults due to social humiliation ‘choose’ to spend food money/budget on hygiene products as greasy hair and bad breath in schools results in bullying.

The Widnes Hygiene bank collects new, unused, in-date personal care and household cleaning essentials such as nappies, shower gel, shampoo and toilet roll to not only prevent individuals from starving themselves, but also ensuring that low-income families, if without basic hygiene products, don’t fall ill which would affect their ability to provide care and work, worsening their position. Recent surveys have shown that in local communities, 8 in 10 primary school teachers have seen a rise in numbers of children attending school unwashed and unpresentable. Their intervention, with 3 in 10 regularly buying their pupils essentials, is a temporary and unjust solution. In addition, the bullying that stems from poverty and uncleanliness drastically impacts pupil’s ability to focus and learn in school; inevitably impacting their opportunities to achieve their best and eventually better themselves and their financial situation. The Halton Borough in particular shows that 26.4% of children are living in distinct poverty. 36.8% of those in work have applied for universal credit, exhibits the need for meaningful change in our communities as many people are paid unlivable wages with precarious contracts impacting mental wellbeing.

The belief in building a stronger, more resilient community by working together is one we should all share. You can contact the Widnes branch to donate or volunteer your time, as well as with the new Boots initiative potentially becoming a primary liaison, picking up donations from the Collection Bin and delivering them locally. You may be working as part of an existing Hygiene Bank Project or be working independently. If working independently, you will need to set up a project initially, and be willing to act as a coordinator for your area. Where you can drop off donations: Co-op 231 Liverpool Rd Ditton Widnes WA8 7HL United Kingdom. Facebook: @thbwidnes thbwidnes@gmail.com

EMILIA GROWNEY

POLITICS, CLASS & SOCIAL ISSUES Emila is currently studying History & Politics and has a keen interest in social and class issues.

JAMES MICHAEL AND JENNY COLQUITT FROM ELY

LOU KAYY PICTURED IN THE OX RECORDING STUDIO

O.X. Updates The O.X. Collective have undertaken a range of projects recently with a multitude of clients. We started the month off with a studio session with Widnes based hip hop artist Lou Kayy. As our in-house engineer, I had the privilege of mixing and mastering his upcoming single “Love me more” (release date tbd). We also collaborated on photo shoots with several Widnes based artists, most notably Jenny Colquitt and James Michaels “Ely” as well as promotional material for Kelly Cresswell’s upcoming single. Finally, we have been working with frequent collaborators “Acoustic Odds” on more promotional video material for songs off their recent itunes topping album. With several more original and collaborative projects in the pipeline, O.X. looks forward to extending their range of services and continuing to provide informative and entertaining episodes of their biweekly podcast “Stereo Typical”. - Liam

For further information on O.X. head to www.oxcollective.co.uk and be sure to follow us on instagram @o.x.collective.

KELLY CRESSWELL

LIAM MCGRATH AND JACK O'NEILL HOSTS OF STEREO TYPICAL PODCAST

O.X. collective

HALTON WEEKENDER

The Great Get Together Halton Weekender It's been a long year of people spending the majority of their time indoors and in some cases, alone. Lockdown hasn’t been easy for everybody - essential workers have been working hard on the front line to help the rest of us, most of us only saw close family and friends via computer screens and nearly everything fun had to be cancelled or rescheduled. This is why now as restrictions slowly ease, it's so important for us to get outside, spend time with others (safely distanced) and just enjoy ourselves! Luckily The Studio in Widnes understands this and hosted The Great Get Together Halton Weekender - a weekend of fun events in Halton bringing the community together, getting people outdoors and bringing a smile to faces. The weekend ran from Friday June 18th to Sunday June 20th and included a number of different activities; Kicking the weekend off with ‘The Great Play Together’, we saw local musicians playing on Facebook Live over on The Studio’s page for local food banks. Saturday saw ‘The Great Picnic Together’ where locals were inspired to get together with family, friends and neighbours to enjoy a day full of sun, food and fun! The weekend was closed off with ‘The Great Walk Together’ which encouraged many to join a group walk with an experienced, qualified walking guide (and lots of yummy tea and cake!).

The Great Get Together has been running for five years now, and seems to be a great hit every year! I spoke to Louise Nulty, representing The Studio and Victoria Park Environment Team, and a member of More In Common, Halton who were responsible for the running of the event. What inspired the creation of The Great Get Together? The Great Get Together was created in response to the death of MP Jo Cox in 2016 by her family, they wanted something positive to come out of the loss of her life. In her Maiden speech in Parliament she focused on us having ‘more in common than that which divides us’ so they wanted to encourage people coming together to show this. The More In Common movement came from it as well and we operate as More In Common Halton. This is the fifth year of the event being hosted in Halton! Was there anything that made this year’s event different/stand out? We had to work within the restrictions but in a way, that has made what we have done more significant. It really has become about the quality experience, little meaningful activities rather than only seeing an event as successful if it had a huge attendance. We really enjoyed having multiple events in 2019 so many people could benefit over the whole Great Get Together Weekend, so we decided to stick with that and do a Facebook Live streamed music event that we called the Great Play Together.

Local More In Common member and musician John Bostock asked other musicians, Jody Holland, Le Verg, Greg Oldfield and Kelly Cresswell to perform short sets and John and Keith Fielding, another member hosted the night in order to encourage people to donate to local foodbanks, both with funds and items. We also posted videos from members of More In Common Halton throughout the stream. The Studio hosted it as we would have done if it was live and in person. On the Saturday we encouraged people to have a Great Picnic Together, our members at Halton Play Council had two picnics with their young people and we provided food for them and the opportunity to make a hat for the event, member Laura Bevan and Fortuna Female Society worked with A Better Tomorrow and Transform Widnes to hold a picnic with refugees and asylum seekers and connect over food and fun with garden games, we also had an ice cream from Esposito’s and a visit to VPET community garden in Victoria Park. On the Sunday we encouraged people to have a Great Walk Together and we launched the monthly Studio Walks project and enjoyed a 7 mile round trip to Pickerings Pasture with a butty along the way! How does the team decide what events they want to include? Really it is just a conversation, see what ideas there are, this year there was also an exhibition of photography called More In Common at Culture HQ in the Shopping City as part of the Celebrate Halton, Borough of Culture year. Local photographer Lauren Quayle took photos of groups and individuals who embody the community spirit of More In Common and The Great Get Together. People can come forward with ideas for the Great Get Together weekend and for other events around the year, if it celebrates sharing, coming together and supporting others we will try our best to participate and promote it.

There has been the Birds of Hope project, which was a winter project funded by the Winter Wellbeing Fund, were people designed and coloured beautiful birds and put them in their windows and posted them online. We had a winter window art project to light up the dark nights and also a More In Common advent calendar with community groups and charities recording and posting a video each day as if they were behind that day's door! What is the best part about The Great Get Together? Spending time with someone you wouldn’t normally spend time with. Smiling, laughing and eating with others. Reaching out and finding ways to show you have more in common. What does the future hold for the events - will this continue to be a yearly event? Yes it will, we connect with other More In Common group up and down the country through the work that the Jo Cox Foundation does and that group is growing all the time, we are now able to support each other so when it seems too difficult or pointless we have each other to remind us just how much we believe in the power of coming together.

To find out more about The Great Get Together, visit @halton_more_in_common on Instagram and get involved!

Lisa Bazley is a trained Actor, Musician and Singer from Halton. For more information, you can contact her via: lisabazleyy@gmail.com

@lisabazley_

On June 19th, I travelled to the historic ruins of Norton Priory on official Serial Culture business, to watch an outdoor 80s themed adaptation of Shakespeare’s ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ - ‘Electric Dreams’ staged by the company ‘A Place For Us’. It’s the first piece of live theatre I’ve been fortunate enough to see in over a year, and I’m glad to say the expectations I held for such an event were surpassed in all areas. It was a great production – well-acted by the whole cast in the scorching heat, with a fantastic live band delivering hit after hit to the audience’s delight (I was even spotted dancing at one point!) I have been fortunate enough to catch up with Michael Nulty, the actor playing Demetrius, to give me some behind the scenes insight into the production process. Q. How did you get involved with A Place For Us? I joined the company A Place For Us when I was seventeen, which I suppose was my first time doing acting professionally, alongside studying Drama in school up to A level. At the company, I was able to learn a lot about performing whilst meeting a bunch of people that I shared a lot in common with, and making loads of new friends - in the company I was able to play Billy Flinn in Chicago, a Jersey Boy, and then Marius in the Les Misérables production before I moved to Uni. Q. How was the rehearsal process for Electric Dreams impacted by Covid? This performance was the first time I had been on stage in nearly 4 years overall, so I was very nervous but equally very excited. The director of the performance, Kate, had asked if I was interested in playing the role of Demetrius, and as soon as I heard that it was an 80s adaptation, I instantly said yes. The rehearsal period was intense; naturally, because of covid, social distancing rules were in place - we were not allowed to touch each other, hand sanitizer bottles were placed everywhere, and we all had limited social interaction in our daily lives. Fortunately, the overall performance turned out better than we all could have imagined.

ELECTRIC DREAMS - REVIEW BY BEN COOPER Q. What was it like acting outside? Acting outside was something very new to me, and it was an amazing experience. A lot of us had gotten sunburnt, a lot of us had bruises from the ruins and obviously bad weather would have posed a real problem to the show - the brilliant thing about this though was that everywhere was a stage, and we were able to take advantage of the big space we had. During rehearsal, some of us would split up and work on separate scenes in one place and then another group in another large space, which was also great in allowing us to project our voices further, really intensifying the atmosphere for the audience; it was as though they were in the woods alongside our actual characters. Q. What has been your favourite part of acting in Electric Dreams? Since I had not been on stage or sang publicly in so long, I had a lot of trepidation about acting again, and was worried that the time I spent away from theatre would affect my performance negatively – however, it was amazing to act again and learn what I was capable of and more confident doing now. My favourite part of the performance is the fight scene between all four lovers. It was so much fun to rehearse - in the scene, we all have to be serious, but there was a moment where we could act silly and the music that was added to compliment the scene was amazing… I got goosebumps the first time we rehearsed it alongside the music, truthfully. Without a doubt, I was very closed off the first couple days of rehearsals, as I didn’t know anybody too well and I was not yet in the groove of the intense rehearsal schedule. Everybody said on the final night that it was amazing to see how much I had come out of my shell. I am so proud at how much we all accomplished in such a short time frame and I cannot wait to see what the future holds for the production! Q. What’s next for ‘A Place For Us’? A Place For Us has Macbeth lined up which will be performed at Norton Priory again this July – auditions have begun so I would recommend anyone who would like to get involved should not hesitate to do so. The company also has a performance of West Side Story lined up for October, which I am proud to say I am involved in, playing the character Tony. As for Electric Dreams, the production was recently picked up by Liverpool Theatre Festival and will be performed again at St. Luke's Bombed Out Church on September 5th! Tickets are already on sale! The whole of the original cast is participating, and we could not be more excited!

HALTON HOUSING COMMUNITY TALKS 1. What service do you provide for young people in Halton? We are in process of setting up a youth group. We want our younger tenants to have the opportunity to shape their neighbourhood and advise us what is missing and how we could improve this. I work with various groups such as Tenant and Resident Groups, Customer Forums etc. All of which doesn’t have the presence of a young voice.

2. How can young people get involved? We are currently working on our Destination Ditton project. This is a new project which will each year focus on a neighbourhood in Halton. Ditton has been selected this year and we are conduction a lot of investment in the area. We are also working with groups such as PIP, who are providing DJ and Bike workshops for young people. We have also donated laptops to Ormston High School, offering gym memberships and funding local football and dance classes. We would like to set up our own Youth group, to allow them the opportunity to decide what we should focus on, what is important to them and have their say on the future of our neighbourhoods. We soon will be planning an event in the Ditton area and would love for any young people to participate in the planning of this. As this is all new we are open to discussion on how the youth group would like to work.

3. What is the origin story of your organisation? Halton Housing is a social housing landlord that was formed in 2005, we acquired housing a large portion of stock from HBC. 15 years later were an award-winning housing association, with over 7,000 homes across Runcorn and Widnes. We're known for our innovative approach - strengthening our reputation as a landlord of choice in the borough and beyond.

4. Give us an example of one of your projects. We have worked in partnership on several projects such as The Wonky Garden. When the group first formed, we helped provide funding and support in getting the project running, providing land, materials and working with area partners such as HBC to help get the group established. They are now selfefficient and have a large volunteer following.

5. What are the benefits to young people, any case studies? If youths become involved with us, it provides them with the opportunity to build new skills to become more employable, improve planning skills, negotiation skills. It also allows them to think creatively, broaden their knowledge of social housing such as homelessness, Anti-Social Behaviour and how Universal Credit has affected people. It also benefits their mental health as it can provide focus and a chance to interact with others their age. To find out more visit haltonhousing.co.uk

REOPENING THE HIGH STREET

HALTON HIGH STREET ART COMPETITION With the reopening of the high street in April, and in line with the Halton Borough of Culture, Halton Borough Council created an art competition for primary school students in Halton to design posters on how to shop safely as we slowly return back to normal. The quality of entries was incredible, with submissions ranging from 4 to 11 year olds. The judges of the competition were faced with the extremely difficult decision of choosing 3 winners, and due to the amazing effort of every entry, there were a handful of highly commended posters that were worthy of a special mention. The posters certainly highlighted the community spirit of Halton and coming from young people were honest and real, whilst also remaining positive and vibrant. The imagination and creativeness of the entries was inspiring and demonstrated the hopeful future of our high street. Keep an eye out for the winning entries that will be posted around Halton as murals and we encourage you to post your own images on social media with the hashtag #haltonhighstreet and tag @haltonbc. You can get in touch at serialculturezine@gmail.com if you are interested in helping out with any Borough of Culture events or with any ideas you may have! Mia Ridehalgh

The winning entries:

Edigbe Ubido - The Birth of Goldenarm For all the latest information, publications and competitions visit the instagram page @thebirthofgoldenarm

Four more pages coming in each issue! If you can’t wait you can buy the full version on Etsy! 37

Serial Culture Zine- Origin Story! Serial Culture zine has been created to provide a platform for the young people of Halton aged 11-25 to share their artwork, cultural activity and lifestyle loves. Through Halton Borough Council’s youth provision programme, young people responded to our survey and call out for contributors. A small team have developed the zine from scratch with a larger community of young contributors. If you want to add your cultural voice and artwork contact serialculturezine@gmail.com The views expressed are those of the contributors. LOOSE has been creating opportunities for the people of Halton to perform, record, share and develop creatively since 1997. In 2010 LOOSE opened The Studio in Lacey Street, Widnes. This community venue is home to our current Lottery funded project, partner organisations and community groups. To find out what we currently offer, visit: www.thestudiowidnes.org.uk

GET INVOLVED! Are you age 11-25 and living in Halton? Serial Culture would love to hear from you! We are looking for budding writers, artists, poets, photographers (the list is endless!), who would like to be featured in our new zine. Perhaps you have a local story you would love to share, want to write a piece on something you are passionate about or show us another talent of yours. We are looking for submissions for upcoming issues, so if you fancy sharing, email us at serialculturezine@gmail.com It doesn't have to be a finished piece; it could even just be an idea! We will work with you to make it print-ready. We only ask that articles are 500-700 words.

WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING WHAT MAGIC YOU CREATE.

COVER ART HUNTER TYGHE