Period Telephone – Queer Britain Museum
We bought the vintage telephone to help bring to life some LGBT+ Switchboard oral histories. It was super easy to set up and our visitors have really been engaging with it. It would be hard to find a more immediate and visceral way to bring these important stories to our audience.
– Joseph Galliano-Doig, Director/Co-Founder at Queer Britain
Queer Britain is the first dedicated LGBTQ+ museum located in the UK. It displays a unique collection of objects, imagery and voices that encapsulate an intriguing timeline of LGBTQ+ experiences and history.
The LGBT+ helpline ‘Switchboard’ was founded in 1974, providing support to anybody who needs it. On display in Queer Britain you’ll find a log book kept by volunteers of Switchboard where conversations were noted. To help bring this often moving piece of history to life a period telephone audio point was utilised. This allows visitors to pick up the handset and dial a number to listen to recreations of conversations that took place as well as some oral histories from volunteers of Switchboard.
“We bought the vintage telephone to help bring to life some LGBTQ+ Switchboard oral histories. It was super easy to set up and our visitors have really been engaging with it. It would be hard to find a more immediate and visceral way to bring these important stories to our audience.”
– Joseph Galliano-Doig, Director / Co-Founder
The period telephone audio point results in a more active participation with the history in question, creating longer lasting memories and helping to educate visitors on issues as important as LGBTQ+ rights.
