The ancient tradition of silk weaving is not just alive but flourishing at Hampshire’s very own silk mill, housed in its original building in the little town of Whitchurch. Emily Briffett talks to some of the team at Whitchurch Silk Mill and discovers that the fabric and ribbons produced here over the years have clothed both the famous and the infamous.
A segment of the silk used for the wedding dress of Diana, Princess of Wales was prepared right here at Whitchurch, while on a less salubrious note, one of the Kray twins is rumoured to have ordered silk from here while detained at Her Majesty’s Pleasure.
Episode Guests
Shannon Bye
Is currently a Weaver/Tackler at Whitchurch Silk Mill. Shannon’s interest in weaving was first sparked in her hometown of Norwich. In 2015, Shannon began her Undergraduate degree at Norwich University Arts, and was initially interested in learning about printing when she discovered weaving and fell in love with it!
Shannon joined the Weaving team at the Mill in September 2019 on a Heritage Weaving Traineeship scheme generously funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. She has spent the last two years whilst on the scheme learning the process and skills of silk weaving on industrial heritage looms (the majority of the machinery in the Mill is over two hundred years old) from our Senior Weaver, with the aim of continuing the legacy of heritage weaving for future generations. Shannon can often be found in the Weaving Shed threading up a loom for a project and delighting visitors with her stories and knowledge of the machines and silk weaving.
Zoë Umpleby
Zoë Umpleby is the Visitor Experience Coordinator at Whitchurch Silk Mill. Zoë joined the Mill team in 2017, as part of a National Heritage Lottery funded post. Her job at the Mill is very varied, and every day is different! Her day to day involves helping support the exhibition, events and education and outreach programmes, and she currently manages the Mill’s digital media programme across the Mill’s social media and website platforms.
Zoë went on to study history at the University of Winchester and then completed a Masters in Cultural Heritage Management learning about exhibition design, curating and museum collection management. She has worked at a number of museums and heritage organisations including the National Trust, the Holocaust Educational Trust and the Royal Hampshire Regiment Museum in Winchester and is also currently working for the National Museum of the Royal Navy. Zoë is studying for a PhD at the University of Winchester researching the possible therapeutic effects of heritage in museums on the recovery of military veterans and personnel suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Further Information and Additional Links
For further information on Whitchurch Silk Mill, information about how to visit, and to follow along in the work that Whitchurch Silk Mill does, have a look at their:
Instagram: @whitchurchsilkmill
Twitter: @whitchurchmill
Facebook: @WhitchurchSilkMill
Website: www.whitchurchsilkmill.org.uk
If you enjoyed this episode, have a look at our other episodes relating to Whitchurch Silk Mill: Whitchurch Silk Mill’s Six-Thousand Mile Connection and In Conversation With John Pilkington: Hampshire’s Own Explorer and Travel Writer