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Story Telling

Rachel Loise has performed as a Storyteller since 1995 and helped start Wild Rose Heritage and Arts in 2002. She loves the people and landscape of the Upper Calder Valley having lived here since 1987 and has developed her storytelling skills by turning oral histories into reflective and entertaining stories using our archive material.

Rachel has developed five stories based on the oral histories we have collected and the story donated to us by Sheila O’Brien about her Aunt Hannah. Rachel takes many small sections from various life experiences and combines them into one tale, which expresses in the round what life was like in this area. She has three stories each of which emphasizes a different element of life as a child in the 1930’s, a child in the 1940’s and a life long experience of a woman born in 1920. She has, also, created two stories based on individuals, which she calls living legends. These highlight two people in the community, David Fletcher and MaryClear, who have made an impact on the environment by preserving our heritage and created change for the betterment of all.

She performs these stories for schools, day centres and community centres sharing the life circumstances of many people with a wide cross section of the community.

  • Great Aunt Hannah

    My Aunt Hannah changed very little over the years as I grew up, in fact almost the only change I remember was her hair.  It was glossy dark brown when I was a small child, it reached almost to her waist as she brushed it, and was strong and thick, and shone like a polished nut.   She wore it drawn back from

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  • Childhood 1930s

    Rachel Loise performing the Childhood 1930s story.

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  • Childhood 1940s

    Rachel Loise performing the Childhood 1940s story.

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  • The Margaret Greenwood 1920s story

    Rachel Loise performing the Margaret Greenwood 1920s story at Mytholm Meadows in 2007 

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  • Living Legend: Mary Clear

    Rachel Loise performing the Living Legend: Mary Clear story.

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  • Living Legend: David Fletcher

    Rachel Loise performing the Living Legend: David Fletcher story.

    Listen to the audio:

About Us

Wild Rose Heritage and Arts is a community group which takes it's name from the area in which we are located - the valley ("den") of the wild rose ("Heb") -  Hebden Bridge which is in Calderdale, West Yorkshire.

Get in touch

Pennine Heritage Ltd.
The Birchcliffe Centre
Hebden Bridge
HX7 8DG

Phone: 01422 844450
Contact Us