Keening receives Special Mention at Whicker Podcast Prize

My current major project is ‘Keening: Song Before the Stranding’, which is being created in collaboration with artist Sam Gare, composer and musician Alex South. The podcast explores the ripples cast by the mass stranding of pilot whales in North Tolsta on the Isle of Lewis in 2023, from the impact on the local community, and those who tried to help the stranded whales on the beach, to the researchers studying the lives of these tightly bonded animals and those investigating the wider causes of stranding and impacts humans are having on cetaceans.

The podcast will weave together the stories of the whales, the stories of those involved in the rescue, marine and cetacean science, the history of our relationship with whales, and music created by Alex inspired by the song of the pilot whales themselves.

Sam and I were one of six podcasts selected to pitch to the Whicker Podcast Prize at Sheffield Doc Fest, the International documentary festival. The Whickers are a legacy of Alan Whicker, journalist, presenter and broadcaster, and the podcast prize is a new addition to the already established Whicker Documentary Prize.

Keening was acknowledged with a special mention from the judges, noting its evocative and moving use of sound to transport the listener to the windswept beach in the Hebrides where the stranding occurred.