Who’d Have Thought That?

The experiences of droughts by people in the UK can vary considerably. From being barely noticed to being so severe they create long-lasting memories that can be recalled in an instant. This is because although water is essential for life and we’d all notice if we did not have a reasonable level of access to it for drinking, cooking, and hygiene, we are fortunate to have benefited from many years of progress in water engineering, which has resulted in our generally having security of supply. Dr Rebecca Pearce has been recording oral histories of droughts from across the UK and has started the ‘Who’d Have Thought That?’ About Drought Podcast series which explores the oral history collection and newspaper inventory in detail, analysing the social impacts of droughts from 1890 to the present day.