Preview by Steve Cooke
Scuttled is a highly recommended bold project drawing on historical research and archaeology to create a unique full-cast audio drama. Starring Christopher Eccleston, the five-episode saga follows the Ashworths, a family living and working on the Rochdale Canal between 1840 and 1922.
The initial idea came from the project’s archaeological consultant and co-producer, Kelly Griffiths when she was running a dig for MOLA [one of the leading providers of archaeological services in the UK] in the centre of Rochdale.
She says:
“I was working on an archaeological watching brief in the historic canal basin of Rochdale, a disused car park that was being redeveloped. The excavations revealed the remains of barge boats abandoned in the boatholes of a warehouse. The vessels were 72ft long and 14ft wide and were worked by families and pulled by horses on the Rochdale Canal carrying cargoes of coal, cotton and produce. These boats – known as Mersey Flats – were left scuttled in the basin in 1921 and at the time of deposition were likely a century old. Whilst I was standing in one of the hulks, I realised I wanted to explore the lives of the families who worked and lived on these beautiful wide beam barges. Luckily, MOLA were distributing IAA (Impact Acceleration Account) grants for projects to creatively interpret archaeology and the idea of Scuttled was formed.”
Writer Ian Winterton came on board to oversee the project and develop the proposed storyline.
“The project really sparked my imagination and, judging by the response we had to the call-out, I wasn’t the only one. Thanks to local writers and history groups, plus a call-out on the BBC Writersroom’s Opportunities webpage, we were inundated with applications – 132 in total – and whittling these down to just five was tough. But, once we’d assembled our team, it was time to take them down to the archives in Rochdale Local Studies to see what aspects of canal life they felt inspired.
“For me,” says Kelly, “I think this was one of the most exciting parts of the project. It was brilliant to see our five writers in the archives accessing the stories of these people through old records, newspapers and photographs. And it was so much fun too. During their research session, the writers each identified an aspect of canal life that they wanted to use as a basis for a short audio script. They were initially briefed to write 10 minute vignettes but, once the writers came back with their initial ideas, Ian began to wonder if Scuttled couldn’t become something more ambitious – and bigger.
“When we were talking in our story sessions,” Ian says, “I kept thinking about how much it felt like a family saga, especially as the five writers were each drawn to aspects and stories of canal life from various points in history. So, once the writers’ scripts were in, it became my job to write connecting tissue and a voice-over from our two narrators, and plot out the family saga, create a theme and story for each episode and, where necessary, rewrite each of the vignettes.”
Eventually the script became five 25 minute episodes telling a saga over four generations. Thoughts turned to casting, beginning with the main protagonist, Thomas, whose life story Scuttled had now become. There had only ever been one name in mind right from the beginning – Christopher Eccleston – and, to the team’s delight, he came on board right away.
While Chris was recorded at Jungle Studios in London, the rest of the adult cast were recorded over two days at Oscillate Recording Studios in Manchester, with Artistic Director, James Steventon, directing.
“Bringing the stories of the Rochdale Canal's bargees to life has been a profound journey. Their resilience and grit, navigating the waters of the late 1800s, echo in every line of this drama and once you dive deeper into their lives, you notice the parallels with our lives even today. We've also had the utter privilege to work with Christopher Eccleston, whose depth and authenticity enrich every moment of the piece. Together, I do believe we've honoured the voices of those who once lived and worked along these storied waters.”
The final element of the drama was casting the children’s roles. For this, the team went to St Edward’s Primary School in Rochdale, situated just yards from the site of the MOLA dig that inspired the drama. After a day of workshops in the school itself, six child actors were selected, and the recording took place at Rochdale’s own Voltalab Studios.
Finally, with all parts recorded, it fell to director James to put his sound designer hat on. “Hearing the stories come to life with a cast of just nine voices in the recording studio, and then expanding this soundscape in the finals edits most definitely demanded creativity and precision. Each voice and sound had to carry the weight of a multitude of characters, and in doing so, we've crafted a world that feels as lived in as our canals once were.”
The first episode of Scuttled went live on Wednesday 4th September 2024, free to stream or download online, with subsequent episodes following every Wednesday. Just search for "The Midweek Drama" where you usually listen to your podcasts or visit our Audioboom page here: https://audioboom.com/channels/4949173-the-midweek-drama.
The entire project was funded by an Impact Acceleration Account Grant from MOLA made possible by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC). The aim of the IAA is to extend the impact of archaeology beyond the usual collaborators and audiences, and to carry out projects that make a measurable difference for people and the planet.
DIRECTED BY James Steventon WRITTEN BY Ian Winterton WITH Neil Bell, Isabel Hague, Janine Lanek, Katie Moore & Paul Rigby
STARRING Christopher Eccleston, Joyce Branagh, Kymberley Cochrane, Becky Kershaw, Jonathon
Carley, Adam Grayson, Steven Hillman, Annie Connell-Welsh, James Steventon & Bailey Cockroft
PRODUCED BY Kelly Griffiths, James Steventon & Ian Winterton
SOUND DESIGN BY James Steventon ARCHAEOLOGICAL CONSULTANT Kelly Griffiths
Title music, traditional canal ballad ‘The Cruise of the Calabar’, performed by Jennifer Reid
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