{"id":3032,"date":"2021-11-30T15:16:06","date_gmt":"2021-11-30T15:16:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/specialcollections\/?p=3032"},"modified":"2025-02-26T13:22:02","modified_gmt":"2025-02-26T13:22:02","slug":"the-library-of-birmingham","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/specialcollections\/2021\/11\/30\/the-library-of-birmingham\/","title":{"rendered":"The Library of Birmingham"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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As Birmingham is the largest city in the Midlands, and the second largest in Britain, it was inevitable that the UOSH project would work with collections covering this area.\u00a0The Midlands team were lucky to collaborate with the Library of Birmingham on preserving three of their key collections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The striking exterior of the Library of Birmingham<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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All three of the collections the Midlands team worked with focus on working-class life, reflecting Birmingham\u2019s long industrial history. Each of the collections uses a different format to explore the topic, providing unique reflections on the working-class experience of Birmingham residents. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"A<\/a>
Tapes from the Banner Theatre Collection<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Banner Theatre Company <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Banner Theatre Company collection consists of audio tapes recorded by Banner Theatre in the 1970s and 1980s. Formed in Birmingham in 1973 as a radical social theatre company, Banner Theatre specialised in incorporating recorded interview material, known as ‘actuality’, into its performances. Each of the productions staged by the company developed from discussions with the local community, resulting in the company gathering a vast body of material that details everyday working-class life and struggles. As Banner Theatre sought to reflect the diversity of Britain, their recordings also document the experiences of Black and South Asian people, asylum seekers, refugees and migrants. As well as interviews, the Banner Theatre Company collection includes recordings from demonstrations, political meetings, and the company\u2019s performances. The tremendous amount of information provided by this collection means it is a crucial source, not only for those interested in social history, but also for anyone wanting to better understand the social and political dynamics of Britain today. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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