Rachel Hawadi was appointed as Project Leader and Jackie Wacha was Deputy Project Leader.

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The project used history and storytelling to celebrate cultural and racial diversity, bringing talks and workshops into educational and community settings. The aim was to raise awareness of the amazing people from global majority backgrounds that have lived in Plymouth, past and present.

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WonderZoo’s core themes are Storytelling, Community and Collaboration and this project will incorporate these elements.

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Partner organisations of the project were Diversity Business Incubator, Plymouth and Devon Racial Equality Council, Nudge Community Builders, and The Box Plymouth.

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The information gained from research went into creating a booklet that was given out to all primary schools in Plymouth, as well as community groups.

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Rachel Hawadi and Jackie Wacha conducted 40 recorded interviews over two years with living figures in Plymouth from global majority who had not been fully recognised for their lives and achievements, in order to raise the profile of the wealth of interesting characters in Plymouth today.

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Hidden Figures of Plymouth Project TimeLine

 

Interviews 2023-2025

A total of 40 oral interviews has been recorded, carefully documented for archival purposes, these interviews have been transcribed and the paper and digital copies, video copies will be archived at The Box.

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Community Presentation at St Budeaux -2023-delivered a talk and workshop for an audience of 20 people.

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Plymouth Hope Festival, 15 June 2023
At this annual community festival celebrating multicultural diversity and football, the Hidden Figures Project highlighted the story of Jack Leslie, the Black footballer who was nearly selected for the England team but was rejected due to the colour of his skin. Attendees received Jack Leslie-themed colouring sheets, and local artist Heather Knight provided face-painting.

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Arts University Plymouth -2023-delivered a talk to a group of 25 second-year BA Photography students. 2023

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Memory Exchange History Group- 2023 -presented the Project to a community group of 20 people.

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One-Day Hidden Figures of Plymouth Exhibition and Film Festival, Plymouth Arts Cinema, 5 October 2023. This event which was well attended by over 60 members of the public celebrated Black cinema and the hidden Figures of Plymouth Project. It featured an opening ceremony with speeches from Plymouth’s Deputy Lord Mayor Kathy Watkin, Anna Navas, Director, Plymouth Arts Cinema, and Rachel Hawadi, Project Lead. The exhibition showcased Plymouth’s historical figures of global majority backgrounds, complemented by a Film Festival celebrating Black filmmaking.

 

Plymouth Community History Festival September -2023-talk engaged an audience of 20 people.

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Storytelling, The Box-delivered two days of storytelling, music, singing, and dancing in collaboration with Plymouth Argaum RFC on 24th and 26th October 2023. The event was made even more memorable by the presence of Jimmy Peters’ family, who shared their own stories.The footfall was counted by the Box and exceeded 200 people.

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10 Workshops at Drake Circus, 1-12 October 2023
These workshops engaged thousands of people passing through the mall, with approximately 800 one-on-one conversations held between 10 am and 4 pm. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with many visitors expressing surprise at the underrepresentation of Plymouth's diverse history.

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Information Table at SWAT Chat 3, University of Plymouth, November 2023

During a panel discussion on ‘Intersectionality,’ Rachel Hawadi and Slain McGough Davey, representing both the Hidden Figures Project and WonderZoo, participated in an engaging conversation with approximately 100 university students and members of the public in attendance. The Hidden Figures Project was also showcased through an informative display table, providing attendees with valuable insights into the project's mission and impact.

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The Jimmy Peters Exhibition, The Box Plymouth, September-December 2023. As part of Black History Month, WonderZoo collaborated with The Box and Diversity Business Incubator to curate Plymouth’s first diverse history festival, ‘Plymouth Community History Festival.’ The Hidden Figures of Plymouth exhibition pod was placed within The Box’s Active Archives area and featured information and artefacts about Jimmy Peters, the first Black rugby player to represent England, who also played for Plymouth Albion. This exhibition was on display for three months and attracted an estimated 5,000 visitors.

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Following a successful invitation to visit and tour the Twickenham Rugby Museum-located in the South Stand of Twickenham Stadium in London-artefacts were generously loaned to The Box and the project. This collaboration led to Jimmy Peters’ England cap being put on display.

Presentation to 4 Greens Trust Community Engagement Officers- 2024 engaged 15 people in a community-focused talk and discussion.

St Peter’s Cathedral School-2024 organised a talk and workshop for 200 mixed-age children.

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Heads of History West County Trust-2024 presented the Project with a talk to 10 key decision-makers in Plymouth schools.

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The Plot-2024 Presented the Hidden Figures of Plymouth Project to the Youth with Councillor Jon Dingle. attended by 30 people.

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SWAT Chat 3, Plymouth University-2024 participated in a panel discussion attended by around 100 individuals.

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Diversity Module at Plymouth University-2024 delivered a talk which engaged 30 students with the Project.

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Plymouth University-2024 delivered a talk to about 20 students on modules related to power and privilege.

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Plymouth University - Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Conference- 2024 delivered a talk to an audience of around 40 people.

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Plymouth Social Enterprise Network (PSEN) AGM- 2024 a talk which engaged around 50 individuals from various organisations across Plymouth.

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Horrabridge Nursery and Primary School- 2024 organised an interactive workshop with 200 pupils.

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Plymouth Octopus Project Community Heritage Network-2024 delivered the same talk on two separate occasions, each time to an audience of approximately 40 attendees.

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One-Day Film Festival, Plymouth Arts Cinema-2024 delivered a talk about the Hidden Figures Project to an audience of around 60.

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Hidden Figures Exhibition, Plymouth City Council, 2024

An exhibition was successfully installed at Ballard House, the Plymouth City Council office building, to be on display throughout 2024.

 

History Walks-

In May 2024, a three-hour walk through Ernesettle Creek and woods was held to celebrate Bill Miller and his often-overlooked contribution to the rebuilding of Plymouth after WWII. 20 people joined the walk.

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In October 2024, Plymouth City Council generously donated a minibus and driver for 11 tours of Hidden Figures of Plymouth landmarks, with Rachel Hawadi serving as the tour guide. Each tour hosted an audience of 15 people and included short outdoor walks as part of the experience, a total of 165 people engaged.

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In October 2024, a history walk was held in Ernesettle, focusing on the legacy of Bill and Claude Miller, Plymouth’s father-and-son politicians who made history as the city’s first city councillor and first Lord Mayor of African descent attended by 20 people.

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4 Workshops at Shekinah Learning Exchange 2024-25
Rachel Hawadi delivered talks to adult groups of diverse backgrounds, engaging around 15 people per session to learn about the Hidden Figures of Plymouth project.

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January -BBC Devon Radio- 2025 talked about the Project.

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University of the Third Age (U3A), Tavistock-2025 presented the Project to over 30 participants.

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Samuel Coleridge-Taylor workshop

January 2025 at The Box in Collaboration with The Mixed Museum London, supported by The Box and Great Western Railways. A creative workshop, with art / writing, reflecting on the themes of the talk and Samuel Coleridge-Taylor's life.

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Hidden Figures Exhibition, Super Saturdays, The Box, February 2025

A smaller exhibition was successfully displayed in a pod for a month during February 2025 as part of The Box’s Super Saturday’s initiative.

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2nd Super Saturday February, The Box-2025 presented the Hidden Figures Project through a talk, screening a short film, and hosting a panel discussion featuring various members of the project. The discussion focused on untold stories of people from Global Majority backgrounds-both past and present-who have made significant contributions to culture, arts, sport, and business in Plymouth. This event, attended by over 120 people, was conducted in collaboration with artist Osman Yousefzada.

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Jill Craigie Cinema, Plymouth University- 2025 introduced the Project to around 50 students and screened a film about it.

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Ten School anti- racism workshops-2025 throughout primary schools in Plymouth for the for the Community Recovery Fund. We have created a 2-hour drama workshop based around the idea of equality and diversity and involves an interactive workshop around the story of a Platypus and how he doesn’t fit into nature’s normal categories – as a metaphor for people who are different and don’t fit in. The workshop also includes drumming, writing, drawing, music, dance and a PowerPoint presentation, with chance for a questions, conversations and discussions. We reached over 1000 kids.

 

Plymouth Community History Festival 2025

October - Thursday 2nd to Saturday 4th Part of Super Saturday linked to the wonderful Remember Respond Resist Festival exhibitions. That featured talks by:

• Hidden Figures Project: Fostering resilience, innovation, and inclusive leadership

• Ruby Nation: The Lesbian Voices of Plymouth Project

• Mimi Jones: Queer Out Loud

• Anglo-Polish History and Heritage

• Artist Talk: In Conversation with Goshka Macuga

• Picture This performed by Alix Harris and the Beyond Face Youth Company. Market and Children's activities and stalls

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