'Horrible Histories for grown ups' help tackle loneliness with true Yorkshire tales

Arts Council-funded Heritage Doncaster has produced a series of Five Minute Histories, short audio plays inspired by real life Yorkshire figures as part of activities aimed at tackling loneliness.

Five have already been produced, telling stories including that of a suffragette and a wartime love story, but now the search is on to find voices - and the stories to tell - for the next five.

Project manager for History, Health and Happiness, Victoria Ryves, has produced the podcasts with the help of former Beautiful South percussionist Gary Hammond, who produced the sound effects.

She said: “They are exactly what we need to raise our spirits at the moment – and they’re astonishingly ‘real’ thanks to the brilliant writers and producers who have stepped in to help us make them, including some very convincing sound-effects by Gary. ”

The first five are available to listen to online, but will soon be sent out around the borough on CD to those who do not have internet access.

The search is now on for people to voice the next series, which will include the tale of notorious highwayman Swift Nick John Nevison, and additional stories.

Miss Ryves said: "The podcasts really do have the power to transport you to the past and shut out what is going on around you.

"We are really lucky at Doncaster Museum to have such a rich collection, so many of the objects around us - such as the suffragette collection - have inspired the stories. The next challenge is to find the voices. The really nice thing has been to involve so many different people - who have got involved from their own homes. We've round up some of our staff, our family members and partners to join in. and even turned to Twitter when we needed someone with a Halifax accent.

"We’ve even managed to track down descendants of a few people featured in the Histories, from as far afield as Canada and the USA, and they’ve helped to voice some of the parts.

"People seem to have really enjoyed them so far, particularly the sound effects and the layers of conversations. One person told us they were like Horrible Histories for grown ups - and we thought there couldn't be praise higher than that."

To get involved, contact Miss Ryves on 01302 737339 or email [email protected]