Arts and Humanities - OU Community Online

OU student Leesa Harker proves she is no flash in the pan. She recently launched her second novel, 'Dirty Dancing in Le Shebeen', in Eason's in Belfast, and signed around 200 copies.

This book follows on from the success of her first novel, '50 Shades of Red White and Blue' - described as an hilarious Belfast-based parody of the successful Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy. Published by Blackstaff Press, Leesa’s first novel is also due to hit the stage in January next year. Renowned Ulster playwright Martin Lynch will cast and produce the story at the MAC between 8-27 January 2013.

And it doesn’t stop there: Leesa now writes a regular column for the the Irish Daily Mirror. Entitled ‘Here’s Me Whaaaaa?’, Leesa charts her humorous observations about everyday life in Belfast.

Leesa claims that she would never have had the confidence to write for the public, rather than just for pleasure, if she hadn’t started studying with The Open University.

“Only recently, after becoming a mother and having some time away from work - when I say ‘work’, I mean ‘paid work’, not unpaid cook/cleaner/nappy-changer/general skivvy to my two little cherubs – did I start writing again. I have been working towards a degree in English and Literature with the OU since 2009. My last module was Creative Writing and I enjoyed every minute of it. I showed pieces I had written to strangers for the first time and it gave me the confidence to start writing for other audiences.”

Speaking about the flexible learning approach of The Open University, Leesa said “The OU allows you to study around your other commitments, giving you enough time to devote to everything in your life.”

Director of The Open University in Ireland, John D’Arcy said “Leesa’s rise to fame has been immensely satisfying to watch. The fact that the OU played a small part in that makes it all the more worthwhile.”

Mr D’Arcy continued to say that Leesa’s success should motivate people who are interested in returning to study or approaching study for the first time.

“The Open University is the UK’s only university dedicated to distance learning, and provides numerous options for students to fit in their study around work or other commitments. Over 71 per cent of OU students work full or part-time during their studies, and can access course materials on their mobile phones and tablets on the move and when suits them. Returning to study can be a big move, and The Open University provides a first class opportunity for people to develop their interests, as Leesa has demonstrated in her success.”

Find out more: 

• Creative Writing at the OU
   

Dr Rita Rhodes, Visiting Research Fellow at the Co-operatives Research Unit of The Open University has written the first book to deal with the development of co-operatives in the British Empire.

Empire and Co-operation: How the British Empire used Co-operatives in its Development Strategies 1900-1970 traces how and why the British Empire came to promote co-operatives as part of its development strategies in its dependent territories, and the global impact that this subsequently had.
 
The book describes how co-operative development policies were implemented in widely varied settings and the results achieved.

By the 1970s co-operatives had become the major alternative business form to investor-led businesses, and their global reach has been attributed to the fact that they are ‘versatile’ and ‘universal’.
 
The British Empire, the largest the world has known, helped them to become universal by taking them to the four corners of the world.

The book is published in paperback by John Donald. ISBN 9781 9065 66562.

OU associate lecturer Jane Purcell has her drama The Righteous Sisters being broadcast by Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour this week.

Jane, who teaches on A215 and A363, will see her work hit the airwaves this week and while you may have missed the first two episodes, you can ‘listen again’ and still catch the remaining three.

The series tells the story of how a love of opera leads two remarkable sisters into a life of danger. It’s a true-life tale of the remarkable Cook sisters' wartime adventures, as they rescue Jewish refugees from Nazi Germany.
 

Heritage neglect and heritage crime are on the rise, reports Dick Skellington.

In an age of austerity it seems that nothing is sacred. Historic buildings across the nation are falling into disrepair, the victims of poor council planning, neglect, arson and vandalism. Two reports have been published this year highlighting the crumbling state of our national heritage.

In October the Victorian Society published a list of the 10 most-threatened Victorian and Edwardian structures in England and Wales. The list includes the first lending library, built in Swindon, and England's only listed spillway in West Yorkshire.

Thieves and vandals have plundered whatever they can retrieve, the society reports. It issues an open invitation to readers to 'name and shame' further examples of neglect and crime. Some buildings have fallen into disrepair despite having a Graded status – they include the Waterloo Hotel in Smethwick, a once glorious structure, the Pumphouse in Bootle and Ispwich's former town hall.

The society receives reports of arson attacks on historic buildings every week. Especially vulnerable are empty buildings, languishing for lack of preservation funding. Local council planners are particularly guilty, the society argues, for allowing traffic and parking priorities to determine quality of public space issues. Holborn Circus in London is cited as an example of how planners can destroy heritage.

Last June English Heritage reported that some of England’s most treasured historic buildings are being severely damaged by vandalism and theft. Over a third of churches have been affected by the illegal demand for lead and copper despite the introduction of security measures. Some have adopted an increased surveillance strategy, including CCTV monitoring, while in Cornwall over 140 medieval wayside crosses have been micro-chipped (for an in-depth analysis of risk factors and cost of repair see Heritage at Risk:Latest Findings. 

The first comprehensive survey of the impact of crime on England’s heritage   revealed almost a fifth of listed buildings were criminally targeted in 2011. In total over 70,000 listed buildings accounting for 19 per cent of the listed stock, were affected, with around 35,000 badly damaged.  A heritage crime is defined as 'any offence which harms the value of England's heritage assets and their settings to this and future generations.' 

Structures with the greatest level of protection were in fact the most vulnerable to attack; metal theft being the single most common offence with one in seven churches targeted. Some structures were the victim of arson attacks. Those churches where lead was taken from roofs saw far greater damage done by rain penetrating old wooden timbers, floors and ornate religious artefacts. The cost of repair runs into millions of pounds. 

English Heritage has adopted a strategy to work in partnership to reduce levels of heritage crime. They encourage the use and development of partnership models particularly in higher risk areas. They have developed a range of recommendations including a Guide for Sentencers, the introduction of Heritage Impact Statements, Out of Court Disposals, Risk Assessment Guidance for Heritage Assets and Heritage Crime Prevention Measures. The aim is to work more closely with colleagues to develop a range of training courses on topics such as investigation techniques, evidence gathering and forensic methods. But will training and information awareness halt the flow of abuse and vandalism? And what can be done to reinvest in our decaying heritage when austerity is cutting so much?
Dick Skellington  November 2012

The views expressed in this post, as in all posts on Society Matters, are the views of the author, not The Open University.

Cartoon by Catherine Pain

The Edinburgh Festival Fringe has brought success for A363 creative writing tutor Jules Horne, with a coveted Scotsman Fringe First Award for her play, Thread.

The production was developed with Edinburgh's Nutshell Theatre and will tour Fife in October as part of the Luminate Festival on creative ageing.

It's the second Fringe First for Jules and Nutshell - 2011's site-specific play Allotment began life at Inverleith Allotments and has toured nearly 50 venues between Lewis and Cornwall over the past year. 

An OU research project which exhibits key historical links and cultural exchanges that took place between India and Britain from 1858-1950 and has been viewed by 6,000 visitors, has been invited back to India next week (25 September).

The exhibition titled Beyond the Frame: India in Britain, 1858-1950, celebrates the often overlooked, long history of the Indian presence in Britain. It builds on extensive archival research deriving from the three-year project Making Britain: South Asian Visions of Home and Abroad, 1870-1950 (funded by the UK Arts and Humanities Research Council from 2007-10).

This follow-on, like the previous project, is led by Professor Susheila Nasta of The Open University in collaboration with Penny Brook of the British Library; Dr Florian Stadtler, OU Research Associate; and historian Rozina Visram.

The exhibition, which was due to end on 31 August 2012, has now been extended so that it can be featured alongside the project for a new diplomatic and Indian research audience by the AHRC and Research Councils UK (RCUK) in Delhi on 25 September.

Project director Susheila Nasta, Professor of Modern Literature at the OU, said: “This event which will take place at the British High Commission in Delhi will showcase the best of AHRC-funded UK-India humanities research. It will set up platforms for future India-British research partnerships and funding networks. 

"Supported by the RCUK, the AHRC, the British High Commission and the Indian Ministry of Culture, the display of the exhibition will reach new Indian audiences drawn from HEI’s, the media industry, funding bodies and the cultural industries. This will further enhance Indian-British knowledge exchange and the wider cultural significance and impact of the OU project."
 
The exhibition presents a little-known aspect of the history of the relationship between both countries. On its extensive tour of northern and southern India in collaboration with the British Council and National Archives of India, it has already attracted over 6,000 visitors.

The display was accompanied by school workshops and digital learning webpages, hosted by the British Library. Monitoring forms revealed extensive positive feedback from teachers, students and the general public alike. The ‘Making Britain’ database, which underpins the research, has received 3,000 new visits per month since its launch in September 2010.

British Deputy High Commissioner, Eastern India, Sanjay Wadvani commented: “The Asians in Britain website and the database should be required reading for anyone joining the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s South Asia team.”
 

 

The first broadcast of China on Four Wheels -in which the presenters embark on two epic journeys across China - is on Sunday 9 September at 8pm on BBC2 and BBC HD.

In this new two-part series Anita Rani and Justin Rowlatt embark on two epic car journeys through China, navigating congested cities and winding mountain roads to explore how the country's economic growth, symbolised by its booming car industry, is affecting people's lives.

Dr Qian Kan and Dr Daphne Chang are the academic consultants on the series for The Open University.

The OpenLearn website also offers more information on Chinese language. You can view a series of short films called ‘Chinese at the tip of your tongue’ and download the OU’s Chinese mobile app.
 

The OU is sponsoring Wigtown Book Festival in Scotland, a 10-day festival of literature and associated arts, which is now in its 14th year.

The annual Wigtown Book Festival takes place in Wigtown, the Scottish national book town, and is the fastest growing literary gathering in Scotland and the largest outside Edinburgh. 

The OU’s Faculty of Maths, Computing and Technology (MCT) and the OU in Scotland is a sponsor of the festival and OU events include a children’s workshop facilitated by MCT staff tutor Ian Johnston and a festival of creativity involving OU design lecturer Derek Jones.

For more information visit the Wigtown Book festival website.