Description
Join writer and local historian, Irene Lofthouse, for a captivating journey into medieval Bradford, uncovering its roots through the street names we walk past every day.
Discover how Bradford was once known as ‘Broad Ford’, a name born from the wide river crossing that gave rise to the town. From Stott Hill to Church Bank, Ivegate to Westgate, and mysterious wells like Jacob’s Well and Sunbridge, Lofthouse explores how these names, many still in use, offer fascinating clues to the people, landscapes, and lives of the past.
Illustrated with old maps, sketches, and vivid storytelling, this talk reveals forgotten corners of Bradford’s early history, blending fact, folklore, and local memory.
About the Speaker
Irene Lofthouse
Irene’s been storytelling since age 6 – it says so on her school report. She is an author, playwright, social historian, actor/director and creative content producer/project developer. Irene has written many plays, two children’s fiction collections and edited several poetry/prose anthologies. A regular contributor to literary/art festivals, she’s commissioned by heritage organisations and universities to create site-specific poems/stories. Currently touring her one-woman show ‘Meet Louise Whitfield: Andrew Carnegie’s ‘most trusted confidante’; she recorded Hidden Bradford storytelling episodes on BBC Sounds and is researching speculative influences on Brontë writing. Irene’s focus is making the invisible visible.
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