We Are Poppy

Dear Poppy podcast:

A conversation between today’s teens and the young women who lived through the trauma of World War One. We Are Poppy explores women’s experiences of the First World War and how the War affected their mental health. It is a story developed and told by young people who ask: what has changed for women in the past 100 years, and which challenges do we still face today?  Created in a time of Covid-19 and lockdown, there are new parallels to be explored. This project focuses on a fictional character called Poppy who lived during the First World War. We look at how the war affected Poppy’s mental health in positive ways – at how she might have been empowered by going out to work. And in negative ways – perhaps she felt discriminated against by earning less pay than men doing the same work. Our podcast, Dear Poppy, imagines a conversation between today’s young people and the young women who lived through the First World War. Created by students from the East Sussex Youth Cabinet and Hove Park School, Dear Poppy looks at how the war shaped the lives of a generation of women as they dealt with trauma, shellshock, loss and new-found freedoms. We hear excerpts from letters, diaries and medical records of women living through the War, and interviews with experts. We ask why women’s experiences and mental health have been ignored for so long.

How you can get involved Each section of this project has its own web page. You can explore the history of women in the War with suggestions of things to read and watch, plus get involved in the creative tasks at the end of each section.

Tiana, Evie, Lola and Amelie in modern and WW1 dress Tiana, Evie, Lola and Amelie making a connection with the past. Photograph by Lotti, 19