City's WW2 voices to feature in new exhibition

Voices of Leicester people who lived through World War Two will feature in an online exhibition marking the 80th anniversary of VE Day.

Leicester in World War Two will be showcase recordings, photos and information held by the East Midlands Oral History Archive, based at the University of Leicester's Archives & Special Collections department.

Launching on 8 May, it will use the recorded memories of people from Leicester to illustrate what life was like during the war, both on the home front and in the military.

Colin Hyde, who runs the archive, said: "The 80th anniversary seemed to be a 'now or never' moment and I decided to go ahead and see what we could do."

Mr Hyde told the BBC the archive has been creating exhibitions about Leicester's 20th Century history for two decades and holds more than 800 recordings relating to World War Two.

"The legacy of WW2 is probably most visible in the various memorials in the city, but it also exists in the memories of those who experienced it," he said.

"Many of the people who lived through the war as adults have now died, but thanks to the recordings in the archive, their voices live on."

Mr Hyde enlisted the help of six volunteers - five university students and a colleague - to research topics, listen to recordings, select extracts and create audio clips of those who lived in Leicester during the war.

One of the volunteers, Max Barber, said he became emotional whilst listening to the voice of a D-Day veteran.

"It has been amazing to listen to so many accounts of people from Leicester who lived through the war," he said.

"I listened back to an interview with David Carey, who survived to tell the tale of the D-Day Landings.

"The tone of his voice, the gaps in-between his sentences, the stutters all pointed to the emotions he was reliving during the interview. He'd witnessed such brutality and it was difficult for me to comprehend what he went through."

Local history author, Austin J Ruddy said: "It's the perfect time to remember the sacrifices Leicester folk made to ensure our freedom.

"It's been an honour to play a part in making sure their voices are still heard today."

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