How do we remember the countless, unnamed people who have shaped London and our society?

This episode uncovers the lives of ayahs – women who served as nannies, nurses and ladies’ maids for British families in Asia at the height of the Empire. The blue plaque on the Ayahs’ Home now commemorates contributions they made, from India to England and everywhere in-between. 

London’s blue plaques can be seen far and wide, on buildings both humble and grand. Not every name, however, is immortalised, and here we pay tribute to a group of people whose story is rarely told, but is part of London – a city strongly shaped by migration.

Charting stories lost and found in London’s East End, this episode examines how a unique building helped give an identity to generations of working-class migrant women living in London, and how a young, east London woman helped make that house a landmark.

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Presenter: Aindrea Emelife, Curator of Modern and Contemporary at MOWAA (Museum of West African Art)

Contributors: Debbie Weekes-Barnard, Deputy Mayor, Communities and Social Justice; Farhanah Bello, Deputy director, Client Strategist, Sotheby’s; Jasvir Singh, Founder of South Asian Heritage Month, family barrister, and activist; Niti Acharya, Museum Manager, Hackney Museum; Paula Akpan, journalist and historian, founder of The Black Queer Travel Guide.

Produced by Sylvie Carlos. Sound design by Weyland Mckenzie-Witter. Hosted on Spotify. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast series are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the Mayor of London.