We look back at Birmingham Live podcast 'HS2 - Walking The Line' and find out about the latest episode of 'The Steamie'
A newsletter debut from producer Matt Millard...
HS2 - Walking The Line - Battle for the scrapyard
Laudable producer Matt Millard takes a look back at his first day working on the Birmingham Live podcast ‘HS2 - Walking The Line.’
As I reflect on the work I've produced over the past year or so for Laudable podcasts, it's hard to forget my very first day 'on location' recording interviews.
Let me take you back to 23rd October 2019, I'd been in the job all of a week or so and myself and Birmingham Live’s politics editor Jane Haynes had already begun planning our first podcast series for the Brum newsroom - HS2 Walking The Line.
The HS2 documentary series would share powerful stories of the families and businesses affected by the planned high speed rail line that will be tearing through the heart of the city over the coming years.
It was a brisk morning and I was armed with a backpack full of microphones and a head full of uncertainty as I made my way to the depths of Birmingham's industrial city centre area of Digbeth to record our first interviews for the new series.
Digbeth is usually associated with quirky retailers, vintage clothing stores and artisan coffee shops; an area known by us Brummies as the second city’s creative hub. However, creative hotspots were a far cry from where we were meeting our interviewees that day, as we were heading to a scrap yard, owned by the notorious Taroni family.*
*A little backstory…
The Taroni family had been involved in a lengthy five year dispute with the high speed rail giant, after HS2 compulsory purchased their huge main scrap yard, but had failed to provide the Taroni’s with the funds they would need to complete the set-up of their new facility. The Taroni family then refused to move from their site until HS2 paid them the six figure amount they were owed. The scrapyard had been owned by the family for over 60 years.
As we approached the scrapyard the message on the surrounding fencing could not be more blunt - "HS2 - Bleeding Birmingham Dry", an honest reflection of the thoughts of many busy owners in the area.
Throughout the morning, we spoke to three generations of the Taroni family. Grandmother Trixie, her son and site manager Russell and grandsons Richard and Harry.
We first sat down with Russell Taroni in his bustling office, his persona larger than life as he vented his anger to Birmingham Live’s Jane Haynes. She questioned him about the history of the site, the effects the last five years has had on him and his family and his thoughts on the upcoming eviction they were facing.
"I woke up this morning thinking, am I in Birmingham or Moscow? It's like being in a communist state, the government think they can just take our land and railroad over us and we just have to put up with it. Well, we are not going to.”- Russell Taroni
When asked about the eviction notice he stated:
“We’ve got nowhere to go. My three kids work here 12 hours a day six days a week. We haven't worked as hard as we have to just throw it all away.”
After speaking with Russell we made our way upstairs to the site's admin office, which overlooked the scrapyard. We were greeted by a cloud of thick cigarette smoke and the welcoming smile of company co-founder and grandmother Trixie Taroni, 81.
As I set up the recording equipment Trixie showed us some old family portraits that hung on the ageing walls of the office, and went on to tell us how she still heads to work every day to look after the company's books and keep an eye on the rest of the family - 60 years on from founding the company with her late husband.
Trixie’s calming nature was almost the polar opposite of son Russell, it was apparent that she was the loving glue that held the family together through turbulent times.
When asked about her thoughts on HS2, Trixie sighed and said “They’re an absolute pain”, and when questioned about the stresses posed on her son Russell, she stated -
“How he sleeps at night I’ll never know”.
Myself and Jane would re-visit the Taroni’s yard a few weeks later to record follow up interviews for the podcast on the momentous eviction day, as their long running dispute with HS2 came to a head, amid legal threats, a noisy protest and furious exchanges.
You can listen to the full episode ‘Battle for the scrapyard’ here -
On this episode you will hear from owner Russell Taroni, his mother and the business co-founder Trixie Taroni, son Harry, long serving employee Kath Gould, and consultants from Birmingham firm HG & Co as they face up to the prospect of moving off the yard that's been in the family's ownership for decades.
And now over to Morven as she tells us about the latest episode of our new podcast The Steamie…
The Steamie
The Steamie will analyse every angle of political debate happening in the corridors of Holyrood and Westminster, offering an insightful and balanced view on the events and commentary shaping Scotland and beyond.
Hosts Conor Matchett and Gina Davidson approach the podcast with a humorous side but don’t shy away from taking a deeper look at the problems and challenging those who are ultimately tasked with solving them.
The first episode features an interview with Savanta ComRes associate director Chris Hopkins, who discusses the ins and outs of the latest polling results.
The podcast’s title is a nod to The Scotsman’s original politics blog, with much of the ‘talk o' the steamie’ now happening online as the country starts its recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.
The Scotsman’s political reporter Conor Matchett said: "Too much of Scottish politics takes place on Twitter and other social media with the loss of nuance and respectful debate.
"The Steamie will hopefully provide listeners and those with an interest in the goings on in Holyrood and Westminster a fresh, less fervent way into the issues.
"This is particularly important ahead of an election like no other and at a key juncture in Scotland's history where often issues are skimmed over rather than examined in depth.
"We will try our best to provide you with unrivalled insight, fantastic guests and high-profile interviews throughout the Holyrood election campaign and beyond."
A final note from Matt:
When writing the HS2 podcast feature for the newsletter this week, it was a joy to take some time out and listen back to the Taroni family interviews. But at the same time it was hard not to feel slightly nostalgic and reminiscent of a pre-pandemic world where us producers ventured from our homes and a working day involved meeting people in real life.
Don’t get me wrong, the pandemic has been an incredible period for the world of podcasting and personally I’ve had the privilege of working on some amazing projects during this last year, including the Alone Together podcast with my fellow producers Morven and Dan.
However, I really do look forward to a day when we can get back out into the world again and hear powerful stories, from real life humans, in person.
And of course there are many more Laudable podcasts to choose from and you can listen to the catalogue here.
Have a great weekend all and stay safe - the end of lockdown is in sight.
- Matt.