From coveting the only house on the street that still had windows after a WWII bombing raid, to an annual Eid bouncy castle and the 1980s youth club that brought the Irish and Asian kids together, the OT Audio Trail brings together the forgotten stories of daily life in Old Trafford

New audio trail tells an oral history on the streets of Old Trafford

A spoken history of Old Trafford has been shared across its streets in an audio trail of stories to look for, find and listen to.

The OT Audio Trail is a collection of spoken memories shared by residents past and present. Each of the stories is linked to the building or street where a listening point is displayed, creating a vivid oral history of the area told by the people who’ve played, worked and lived in Old Trafford over the last seven decades.

Created by community art collective OT Creative Space, the audio trail features 44 recordings across 33 locations including Ayres Road, Seymour Park and Chorlton Road. QR codes displayed in each of the locations can be scanned by listeners to hear tales of Old Trafford and long-gone landmarks.

Lifelong resident Jeanette McLaughlin, 77, shared her memories of growing up in post-war Old Trafford after being approached by Lynda Sterling, owner of OT Creative Space.

“I already knew Lynda quite well because she does a lot of community art projects in the area, so it was lovely to be invited to take part in one of them and share my memories of growing up,” says Jeanette.

In one of the stories she shared, Jeanette describes how her mum scoured bombed-out, war-torn streets for a house with windows intact.

“Their house had a hole in the roof, like most of them did just after the war,” she explains. “My mum hated it, so she went out one day and traipsed up and down the streets looking for a better house with no holes and one that still had windows in it.

“She found one in Firswood and went straight to the owner to arrange to pay the rent. Then she went back to the old house, packed up all our stuff, paid a rag and bone man to move everything with his horse and cart and then went to pick my brothers up from school – all in a day!

“Unfortunately, she forgot to tell my dad, so when he finished work and went home he had no idea where everyone had gone!”

Sisters Sunera and Saleha Bhana shared their memories of growing up in Old Trafford after being approached by OT Creative Space artist David Nguyen.

“David used to live near us and loved the fact that every Eid we had a bouncy castle on the street where everyone came together to celebrate,” says Sunera, who is 29. “He explained what he wanted to do with the audio trail and asked us if we had any stories about growing up here that we’d like to share.

“Saleha and I have lived in Old Trafford our whole lives and have such happy memories. One of my favourites is all the girls in the street, seven or eight of us, coming together to play cricket on Stamford Street for hours every evening. It’s so amazing to think that these memories are now being shared as part of Old Trafford history.”

Artist David explains the idea behind the audio trail: “We want to engage with older residents and mix in stories and experiences from the people who’ve made their home here more recently and build connections throughout the area,” he says.

“We collected a range of memories and experiences that uncover layers of play, work and bonds to buildings within Old Trafford. Places like the former Horner’s bike shop on Ayres Road, which is long gone but lots of people remember buying their first bikes there. Or the Old Imperial Picture Theatre, now the Imperial Timber Warehouse, where lots of happy family memories were made.”

OT Creative Space has created an interactive map showing each location where stories can be found. For those who no longer live in Old Trafford but are keen to reminisce, all of the stories are available to listen to online. Both the map and the stories can be found at www.otcreativespace.co.uk/ot-audio-trail. The project has been created with funding from Arts Council England.

The stories available are:

Bill’s Stories
Bill has deep roots in the community – he’s the third generation in his family to own the butcher on Ayres Road, which is the last surviving independent butcher in the area.

Ibrahim’s Stories
Ibrahim talks of the many adventures he’s had growing up in the community, including playing rounders in the street and exploring the ‘haunted’ clinic on Ayres Road.

Jeanette’s Stories
Born in Stretford Memorial Hospital and a lifelong resident, Jeanette has fond memories of her life in Old Trafford.

Norma’s Stories
Norma shares her memories of family outings to the Old Imperial Picture Theatre.

Paulette’s Stories (And Music)
A violinist for the Hallé Orchestra, listeners to Paulette’s audio can hear her practising her instrument just as they would if they were passing her house.

Stacey’s Stories
Stacey has wonderful memories of the parks of Old Trafford, and remembers playing in Seymour Park when it was all just hills.

The Bhana Sisters’ Stories
The Bhana sisters have very fond memories of community celebrations and street parties.