Our Story

Our journey started with over 150 local residents joining workshops, quizzes, storytelling sessions and history events across Merton, Sutton, Bromley, Croydon and Southwark. Together, we explored 500 years of African-Caribbean presence in Britain — and from that co-creation came our first major production:


Dorothee in the 18th Century: I Got a Story to Tell, a vibrant multi-artform performance blending audio drama, choreo-poetry, dance, photography, original music and visual art at the Charles Cryer Theatre.



We deepened the 18th-century story through Remains to Be Told, a series of creative writing workshops and heritage walking tours. Participants reimagined the lives of African-Caribbean figures connected to local historic sites, layering personal insight onto collective memory.

At the same time, our 20th-century story took shape through Saturday Soup — a spirited community workshop of dance, debates on food, shared memories and the lived experience of post-war African-Caribbean migrants.

Local community groups helped us piece together the cultural heartbeat of the 1950s and 60s.

Twelve African-Caribbean elders joined a deeply reflective second phase of Remains to Be Told, using writing, art, photography and walking tours to connect ancestry with the present-day streets they call home. The project strengthened community pride and intergenerational connection.

We expanded our cultural gatherings with Ground Provisions, drawing residents from Bromley, Croydon, Epsom, Sutton and Wandsworth into warm, food-centred, multi-generational conversations. Traditional meals, dances and stories from the 1950s–1990s fostered renewed community energy and reduced social isolation.

At Merton Arts Space, Dorothee in the 20th Century: Saturday Soup came to life.

130 residents — including Windrush elders and their descendants — travelled through Black British cultural history: calypso and market shopping, Lovers Rock dances, the 1976 uprisings, the Stephen Lawrence generation, and the rise of UK hip hop and garage.

The performance sparked calls for more cultural storytelling across the borough.

For Black History Month, The People’s Writes brought African-Caribbean elders to the Charles Cryer Theatre to share migration stories, resilience, and humour — opening the floor to powerful intergenerational dialogue.

Our ten-week Ground Provisions storytelling programme helped residents articulate journeys through racial and economic injustice, culminating in a public performance and community forum (2025).

This year, Ground Provisions for Saturday Soup continues in Sutton and Wandsworth, bringing storytelling, shared memory, food traditions and performance to new audiences.
 
New productions for 2025 are now in development — shaped, as always, with the community, not just for it.