This year’s DD Day, on 23 November 2023 is centred around the 60th anniversary of Doctor Who and its hugely influential theme tune, realised by Delia and her tape assistant Dick Mills in the BBC Radiophonic Workshop, working from Ron Grainer’s musical notes and keywords like clouds and wind bubbles.
Our amazing steering committee of younger volunteers have curated and will present an afternoon of activity to celebrate the heritage around this iconic piece of electronic music.
There will be an opportunity to play with weird and wonderful sounds as we will have modern re-creations of the BBC DIY instrument they called the Wobbulator which Delia used to create the original Doctor Who melody will be involved (click here for more info on the wobbulator).
There will also be oral histories, short films, Doctor Who props made by schoolkids, archive items on display and the in-person premiere of our new artists’ commissions in response to Delia’s legacy and archive.
4-7pm – Discover the work and legacy of Delia Derbyshire & classic Doctor Who through pop-up installations in the Henry Watson Music Library. Free and suitable for all ages.
4-5pm – Make your own Wobbulator workshop in Manchester Histories Hub. FULLY BOOKED! A unique chance to be led through the process of making a wobbulator from a DIY kit created for us by electronic music instrument maker Nina Richards. Then have a jam and enjoy experimenting with sounds. £3 per person + booking fee (this workshop is for age 18+) .
6-6.45pm – Experience two new audio–visual works (approx 5 minutes long) created by 2 pairs of artists we have commissioned this year: Joy Ingle+Laura Spark and Joel Foster+Alexis Maxwell (commissioned in partnership with Brighter Sound). There will also be an informal Q&A with the artists to find out more about their process and exploration of the Delia Derbyshire Archive which lives here in Manchester. Free, suitable for age 14+.
Do get in touch if you have an access requirements or want any more information about the event.
This event is produced by Delia Derbyshire Day in partnership with Brighter Sound, Manchester Histories and Manchester Central Library.
This event is gratefully supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund
