At the weekend I went to Totnes to undertake some work with Stelaria Media and Soundart Radio, about how community radio and university-based researchers can better support public engagement. I recorded some sounds from my journey, and had a chance to note some thoughts about the benefit of the community media approach to public engagement, [...]

Rob Watson Media

Distraction Therapy 049 – Visit to Totnes

Last week I went for a stroll with Hayley Rogers, and we talked about her work with the Y-Heritage project, and what she has learnt about the changing nature of Leicester. We also listened to some French Synth pop.

Distraction Therapy 048 – Leicester Heritage Walk With Hayley Rogers

I’m obsessed with walking tour videos on YouTube at the moment. I’ve been watching them as a virtual alternative to travelling during the lockdown. I’m also looking at them to learn how they are produced and presented, and the variations in form that they demonstrate. I’m hoping to build-up a picture of how they work, [...]

Distraction Therapy 047 – Walking on The Wildside

Last weekend I went to Liverpool to visit family for the first time in eighteen months. We stayed in the city centre and met up for a visit to New Brighton, where we enjoyed playing in the arcade, walking along the sea front and eating fish and chips. I captured some sounds and chit-chat along [...]

Distraction Therapy 046 – Liverpool Visit

I’ve been watching walking tours on YouTube, which are videos posted to show what different towns and cities are like around the world. There’s a continual flow of new videos being posted all the time, some taken from live-stream events, and others shot as a specific tour. I started by visiting places that I have [...]

Distraction Therapy 045 – YouTube Walking Tours Reviews

This week I went to an event celebrating the work of a women’s group who have been meeting over Zoom over the lockdown in Leicester. They learnt how to knit and crochet, as well as using Zoom and YouTube to share skills in fostering a network of friends. It was lovely to be able to [...]

Distraction Therapy 044 – Knit and Natter and Virtual Sound Walks

I went for a walk through Leicester to test a new gimble that I’ve bought, and I captured some audio in the process. It’s interesting taking the audio from the video, because its less obvious what’s being referred to.

Distraction Therapy 043 – Leicester the Home of King Lear

This morning I went for a walk into Leicester City Centre, and recorded some thoughts reflecting on the need for total systems change that has been identified in the IPCC report about climate change. What does this mean for our towns, neighbourhoods and communities? How are we going to facilitate change positively? How can we [...]

Distraction Therapy 042 – Total Systems Change

As part of the Leicester Stories project, we went out into Leicester City Centre to ask people what they know of the Build Back Better slogan. Roy and Ryan were able to record some fascinating comments that help to show the wide variety of opinions and experiences that people have of the whole idea of [...]

Distraction Therapy 041 – Leicester Builds Back Better

Beth Piggott is a producer with ArtReach, who has been working on the Liberty UK festival that is taking place in Leicester. Taking place across July and August, Liberty UK Leicester offers three art trails in the city centre. As a collaboration with members of the local community, the festival tells local residents stories and [...]

Distraction Therapy 040 – Beth Piggott and LibertyUK Festival

How we connect and build relationships with one another is an essential question for the future sustainability of both our local and our global communities. John Coster, of Leicester’s Documentary Media Centre, discusses and explains why he has established the Parallel Lives project, based here in Leicester, but with the aim of connecting people through [...]

Distraction Therapy 039 – Parallel Lives with John Coster

The weather was perfect on Sunday for our visit to the Moira Furnace heritage and craft day. We chatted about the importance of valuing our heritage and making it accessible now that we are opening up from the pandemic. This was an opportunity to develop our media capture skills as part of the Y-Leicester Heritage [...]

Distraction Therapy 038 – Moira Furnace Heritage Day

The work of the volunteers at Evington House, has brought the gardens to life as a place of increasing biodiversity. It was lovely chatting with Helen and Geoff, and hearing about how they plan the garden so that it supports a wider-range of wildlife and looks after itself because they are increasingly recognising that not [...]

Distraction Therapy 037 – Evington Community Gardening

Today I had three conversations at the Hope CIC Men’s Support Drop-In Café, that takes place every other Saturday, 10.30am to 12.30pm at the Bishop Street Chapel Café in Leicester. I chatted with Tina Barton about her experience running support and development groups for women, and how the need for similar support networks for men [...]

Distraction Therapy 036 – Mens Support Drop-In

The need for public support as we come out of the lockdown is readily apparent all around us. Men often don’t come forward to ask for help because they are unfamiliar with expressing their emotions and asking for help. Mahesh Hettiarachchi has set up Hope Against Poverty, as a community interest company in Leicester, with [...]