The Caretakers

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BBC Radio 4 LW

Documentaries

Factual: Life Stories

Fresh perspectives on cultural treasures from the cleaners who look after them.

In every museum and gallery, cleaning and conservation teams look after our cultural treasures. Here, they offer fresh perspectives on the buildings and collections they care for.

In every museum and gallery, cleaning and conservation teams look after our cultural treasures. They have an intimate knowledge of the buildings and collections they care for, yet their opinions are rarely heard. This series offers a rare chance to perch invisibly on the shoulders of these exceptional guides, noticing what they stop to consider as they go about their work.

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The Caretakers: Episode 1: Reimagine

Episode 1: Reimagine

BBC Radio 4 - The Caretakers, Episode 1: Reimagine

Follow Doreen, Michael and Philippa as they pause to consider the cultural buildings and collections they keep clean.

In every museum and gallery, cleaning and conservation teams look after our cultural treasures. They have an intimate knowledge of the buildings and collections they care for, yet their opinions are rarely heard.
 
Artist Eloise Moody has been working closely with nine people across the United Kingdom tasked with keeping their respective museums, galleries and collections clean. Every sound you hear in this programme - from brushes sweeping to each word and sigh - was collected and recorded by the Caretakers themselves. This series offers a rare chance to perch invisibly on the shoulders of these exceptional guides, noticing what they stop to consider as they go about their work.
 
Doreen is the cleaner in the Glasgow Women’s Library. At the end of her shift, she sits in what was once an exclusively male reading room, thinking about its change in identity. As she imagines, she reveals potential – in people, objects and places.
 
Art gallery Compton Verney is set in a historic mansion. In its impressive halls we meet Michael who left a career in the Chinese army before settling in Warwickshire. Having completely rethought his lifestyle, he explores the collections while considering the role of destiny in his life.

Philippa works in conservation at The Hardmans’ House, a National Trust property. The specialist cleaning she does brings her in close contact with the contents of the house and its former inhabitants. What were once belongings are now 'a collection’.  As the house has its annual deep clean, we re-examine the objects through Philippa’s eyes.  

 
Producer: Eloise Moody
Producer and Editor: Emma Barnaby
Executive Producer: Anishka Sharma

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The Caretakers

Episode 1: Reimagine

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