HAP24: An Unusual Period of Unspecified Length (University of Stirling)

This video showcases the University of Stirling Pandemic Oral History Project, launched in 2021 to tell the story of the University’s vibrant and varied community during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The project organisers, Dr Stephen Bowman (Lecturer in History), Rosie Al-Mulla (Assistant Archivist) and Sarah Bromage (Head of University of Stirling Collections) interviewed 40 members of staff and trained a group of students in oral history interviewing so that they could conduct interviews with (21) members of the student body, past and present. The resulting collection details a wide variety of lived experiences and evidences how our University community experienced the beginnings of this pandemic, the University’s closure, and working or studying from home. It also stands as testament to the benefits of co creation between staff and students.

To conclude the project, the project team has published an article and this accompanying film - “An Unusual Period of Unspecified Length”: A Creative Oral History of the Covid-19 Pandemic - which adopts unconventional and creative approaches to the interpretation and presentation of the archive, and offers a reflection on the process of curating.