You may recognise her from the pub or while grabbing your morning coffee, but Ruth Abrahams has extended her skills into recording podcasts, and recently released one about the history of Cuckfield.
While the rest of us were going two ways in lockdown; either doing Joe Wickes routines or taking on some heavy snacking, Ruth first got her taste for podcasting, when she wrote a comedy about pigeons living in Brighton, which she then recorded and uploaded to Spotify. With her family she had also recorded their experiences of lockdown for a local history project too.
“I got the hang of it,” Ruth explained, “and learnt a few technical skills along the way. This led me on to other topics for new podcasts on my channel, including guided tours of Brighton and interviews with people I am interested in.
“After reading a number of articles on the Cuckfield Connections website and relaying them inaccurately to friends, it seemed a good idea to research the stories properly and record them as a podcast. The benefit being that they can be listened to at any time of the day and anywhere in the world free of charge.”
So, that’s exactly what Ruth did. Using information from Cuckfield Museum as well as various online resources, she picked stories of life in the village, and found local people to talk to about them. This podcast includes such subjects as stagecoach routes, public whippings, and the more recent community acquisition of Ashenground Woods. And Ruth interviews a number of locals including: Andrew Leask, Annie Rees, Gordon Ward, Jane Swain and Kate Fleming, who commented: “Old villages are full of fascinating stories and memories which reveal the past and enrich the present. I was privileged to talk to Ruth (also known as Kitty Fisher) about Diamond House in Cuckfield (see inset photo) which at the turn of the last century was the village bakery, baking bread on site in my little bakehouse, which is still at the back of the house.”
The podcast takes the form of a guided walk of the village, starting at the car park in Broad Street and leading up the High Street, down to the Recreation Ground and then through to Ockenden lane, Holy Trinity Church and back to the car park via Church Street. The 45-minute podcast is freely available – simply search for Cuckfield Walking Tour podcast – or via this link: www.bit.ly/3jA7E6T