Move over Britannia, Bobby Baker rules!

For the past three months I have been immersed in the world of Bobby Baker's Great and Tiny War, a project that is very close to my heart. I have been working for Wunderbar as a host, guiding visitors around the house, talking to them about the artworks, operating any equipment, making lots of cups of tea and coffee and providing hospitality. Being involved in this project and working with such a supportive team has been an absolute joy and I am really going to miss it. Along the way there have been plenty of challenges to keep us on our toes such as the time when the mechanics behind the surprise element in room 3 broke, and I had to phone Steve, the Technical Director of Great and Tiny War (based in London) and follow his problem diagnosis and damage limitation instructions or the time that the venue for one of the workshops was changed due to an emergency situation, and so we had to change to a space without an oven (pretty essential for a bread-making workshop), resulting in me going back and forth between Nunsmoor Park (where the workshop was) and 133 Sidney Grove where the unbaked bread sculptures were put in the oven and the baked bread sculptures were returned to the workshop and reunited with their respective creators.

There have been some amazing stories gathered throughout the exhibition, and I have plenty of fond memories to take away.

My final day of tours brought with it lots of happy memories. On one of the tours in the morning I was host for a couple of Sidney Groovers (people who live/have lived) on Sidney Grove one whom carried her young son with her. The baby was really well behaved and the women loved the exhibition. When we were talking in the kitchen, one of the women, Olivia, told me how her other (3 year old) child, Frida, walks past the house every day and gets very excited by the sign outside 133 Sidney Grove, pointing at it and exclaiming "It's Bobby Baker'. Unfortunately Olivia did not think that Frida would have enough patience to go on the tour, and so she had explained that she would not be able to see inside Bobby Baker's house. I couldn't bear the thought of her little girl having her dream shattered, and so tried to think of a way that it would be possible to tailor the tour to her. We were fully booked for the rest of the day, but proposed a way that Frida could get a magical experience. I asked Olivia whether she would like to bring her child at the end of my last tour and I would do a special little viewing in a few of the rooms. She thought this was a great idea, and said it would fit in with their bedtime routine. Indeed, when I was in the kitchen at the end of my final tour, the doorbell rang and I opened it to find Olivia with Frida in her arms, dressed in her pj's all ready for bed. I took them to the room of bread sculptures and the room with all the peppermint sculptures, and talked about the work. After we had used the pictures on the wall to identify all the peppermint sculptures, we went to the kitchen for Frida to choose herself a biscuit as a treat. She asked if Bobby Baker was there, and as I explained where Bobby was, I showed them the photo of Bobby Baker wearing the bread antlers that she made for a previous performance. These were hung on the wall, and I asked if Frida would like to wear them and be like Bobby Baker. The result was an extremely happy 3 year old with the biggest grin on her face, an incredibly grateful Olivia, and a very happy Helen! I could not have asked for a better way to end my Great and Tiny War hosting duties.

The following day I received a message from Olivia thanking me for engineering the opportunity for Frida to visit the installation. She reported that Frida had been talking about Bobby Baker all day!

I've met lots of very special people and made some life-long friends. The other hosts and the Wunderbar team have been such a support to one another and we have shared our experiences and thoughts via a Hosts Book. I'd like to thank all involved for making the experience so powerful, nourishing and stimulating. I really hope that the project continues to live on in some form, and that the hosts and Wunderbar team keep in touch and work together again.

The crumbling of the breast plate

As part of Great and Tiny War, Bobby Baker worked with a variety of women attending local women's groups. She ran a number of bread sculpture workshops in which the women were asked to make their own armoury; items that they would use to protect them, to show their strength or to provide them with comfort. During these workshops Bobby showed them some of her own bread sculptures that she made for previous performances. These included a breast plate and some antlers for protection. These items have been displayed in the kitchen at 133 Sidney Grove for visitors to Great and Tiny War to look at and wear. 

A couple of weeks ago, when I was in the kitchen hosting a group of guests, I was startled by a sudden thud. The bread breast plate had fallen off the cupboard door where it was hanging, and as it hit the floor, had broken in half. The effect of this was significant and was gradually revealed over the final two weeks of the exhibition. Not only was the bread plate the dough the bound the various different elements of the exhibition together, it was the shield that protected the exhibition and guarded against bad fortune. 

The crumbling of the breast plate signified the fragility of many of the elements within the exhibition. It was ironic that this happened in the final stages of the exhibition - in the period of time that the exhibition had been extended. It was as if certain elements had reached the end of their natural life. Technical issues became more commonplace, visitors (and hosts) encountered more problems getting to the exhibition on time due to the unreliability of public transport, and biscuit supplies dwindled (although this was quickly remedied!).

They say all good things must come to an end, and maybe the crumbling of the breast plate is evidence of the truth within this expression.

Great & Tiny War featured on BBC Look North (North East & Cumbria)

Tonight (Monday 10th September) BBC Look North (North East & Cumbria) featured Bobby Baker's Great & Tiny War.

Sharuna Sagar visited the Great & Tiny War house today.

She was given a tour by one of my fellow hosts, Hannah.

Like everyone who does the tour, she ended in the kitchen where she was offered a cup of tea (other beverages available!) and a biscuit

If you missed the live version at 6:30pm, fear not as it is available on BBC iplayer

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0bjcgpt/look-north-north-east-and-cumbria-evening-news-10092018

Press launch of Bobby Baker's Great & Tiny War

After years of planning and hard work, Bobby Baker's Great & Tiny War opened its doors to the press today. I was honoured to be giving the first few tours, and was delighted to hear visitors being so complementary and positive about the project. 

It's still not quite sunk in that this amazing project is taking place so close to where I live, 133 Sidney Grove. Talk about being on my doorstep!

To come and experience the work for yourself book online http://bit.ly/Greatinytickets  #greatinywar
You've got until 9th November, but be warned - tickets are selling fast!

Great & Tiny War on BBC Radio 4's Today Programme

Get a flavour for 4,701 meals by listening to @BobbytheBaker talking about her Great & Tiny War on @BBCr4today here on iPlayer, 1hr42 in. http://

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0bgp8g6

Bobby Baker's Great and Tiny War - the badge

On Wednesday we had another session of Host training for Bobby Baker's Great & Tiny War. We did a full walk-through, stopping occasionally to make changes to the script and testing out timings. A few of the technological elements are still being tweaked, but all is nearly ready for the press launch tomorrow. Just as I am about to leave the house we receive a delivery of badges. 

So, now I have a Great & Tiny War badge to prove that I am a Great & Tiny War Host. 

Great & Tiny War - Bobby's introduction

What's on your doorstep? - My discovery of Bobby Baker's Great & Tiny War

I live on what I believe is the friendliest street in Newcastle (arguably the UK). We have a facebook group for residents to post things related to the street. As the vast result of residents have some art/music/theatre connection, there are regular posts by residents spreading the word about gigs, performances and exhibitions that they are involved in. A few months ago there was a post on The Sidney Groovers about a project that would be happening on our street. A few days later a letter was posted through my door with details of the project; Bobby Baker's Great & Tiny War.



I was immediately excited - Bobby Baker is an inspirational woman and an artist whom I hold in very high regard. I have followed her work for a number of years and could not believe that I would now get the chance to witness one of her installations in a house down my street.

Fast forward a few more months and I received notification from Wunderbar, another arts organisation that I rate highly, that they are working on a project called Great & Tiny War and are looking for people interested in working with them to realise the project.

Naturally I responded immediately with enthusiasm about the opportunity to work with two artistic entities (and their teams) that I greatly admire and respect.

I won't bore you with the many coincidental discoveries and revelations of connections that arose throughout the following 'recruitment' process, but to cut a long story short, I am delighted to be one of the hosts that will be guiding visitors around 133 Sidney Grove for Bobby Baker's Great & Tiny War.



Today was the first time that all the hosts met with Bobby and the Wunderbar crew in the house. Bobby (Lead Artist and Artistic Director, Daily Life Ltd), Illana (Artistic Director, Wunderbar) Hannah (Producer, Wunderbar) and Ree (Participation Producer, Wunderbar) introduced the project and explained our roles as hosts. We were given a run-through of the tour, and saw the installation in its final stages of being completed. One thing is for certain; visitors are in for a treat.

I'll be blogging regularly about the project, and hope that readers of this will visit the installation.

For more information about this Wunderful project, including how to book tickets, please visit

https://wunderbar.org.uk/gtw/great-tiny-war/