My Inspiration: Lizzie Lovejoy (Trailways)

TRAILWAYS: Performance & Open Mic Night is a celebration of County Durham (especially Newton Aycliffe and Heighington), taking place at Oakleaf Sports Complex on Thursday 21st November (6:30pm).  The event, which takes place near Newton Aycliffe train station, will feature a series of spoken word and musical performances from County Durham artists, including Lizzie Lovejoy, Sam Slatcher, Alison Curry and Kirsten Luckins, which celebrates their home and what it means to them. After the featured artists, there will be an Open Mic opportunity for local people to share their skills and words with the audience. You can sign up for the event here.

Here, poet, performer and organiser Lizze Lovejoy tells us about what inspired the event…

Trailways is a project I began back in 2022 with seed funding from Durham Council. I wanted to learn about people’s stories and see our connection to the railways. Earlier this year I was lucky enough to receive Germinate funding from the Cultivate Commissions with No More Nowt and Northern Heartlands, which meant I could expand the project further.

My inspiration has always been the local community, especially working-class people. I am a story collector and story sharer. It has been an honour to go into public spaces and offer my time in exchange for memories. I have learned about brilliant people. I have learned about their hardest days and most beautiful moments. I hold them all.

As part of this project, I’ve been focused on understanding our connections to the railways. Obviously, in the North East, our heritage is already deeply entwined with trains, but I wanted to know more about today and what is important to people now. It came back to human connection almost every time. People shared moments of travelling with family and friends, of taking their little ones on a big journey for the first time with sticky fingerprints on the window as they looked out at classic landmarks. They also told me of times they were stuck in a carriage with strangers when the crossings would fail or there were leaves on the track… They had powerful moments with people that they’d never meet again. They’d laugh and grieve and sing together. And these weren’t rare experiences. 

I started my own projects themed around trains for similar reasons. I was handed a stranger’s baby when coming back from Scotland because the mother desperately needed a wee. There was so much trust in the interaction. 

There’s been so many railway ‘secrets’ to discover as well! Like the interruptions of the fae folk as Stephenson tried to build the line. Fairies didn’t seem to like the addition of tracks to the land they lived in around County Durham. 

Now I’ve spoken to hundreds of people. I keep their moments close and some have been made into poems and pictures that are ready to be shared. That’s why the show is happening at the Oakleaf. It’s great to have a space to share real stories from working-class people using our public transport system, especially one that is right next to the railway line where it all began.