Event Details
- Location: Newcastle Cathedral
- Address: St Nicholas Square, Newcastle, NE1 1PF
- Start date: 05th March 2026
- End date: 27th April 2026
- Times: During visitor opening hours
- Entry fee: £0 (Donations welcome)
What was it like to be a woman behind bars in 19th-century Newcastle?
This insightful exhibition, coinciding with International Women’s Day (8 March), uncovers the hidden histories of women in Newcastle’s 19th-century prison.
Drawing on Newcastle Prison: A History 1828–1925 (Tyne Bridge Publishing, 2025), the exhibition brings to light the stories of young girls, women affected by poverty and addiction, and suffragettes who challenged the boundaries of their time. Together, these voices reveal the realities of crime, punishment and resilience in a society shaped by inequality.
The exhibition incorporates the ‘Story Chair’, developed for Newcastle Cathedral in 2023 through a unique collaboration involving women with lived experience of the criminal justice system. The Story Chair has since toured several other venues, carrying profound meaning for the women who contributed to its creation and ensuring authentic representation.
The exhibition will launch with an event on Wednesday 4 March at 6:30pm.