A woman whose voice brought Cornwall to the world stage will be remembered in a new public archive.

The Brenda Wootton Archive will also bring her music to a new generation through an audio-visual work by artist Florence Browne and music workshops for young people.

The Mordonnow / Sea Waves project has secured funding from Arts Council England National Lottery and FEAST for the archive, which will be housed at Kresen Kernow.

A Cornish cultural icon and ambassador, Brenda Wootton built an international touring career in the 1980s from her vocal performances, honed in the folk clubs of Penwith.

Once a familiar voice of Radio Cornwall, awareness of her achievements has dwindled since her death in 1994, and this long-overdue project will shine a light on her story and promote her music and poetry to new audiences.

Brenda Wootton grew up in west Cornwall in the 1930s, and with no formal musical training developed a later-life career as an international touring celebrity. An unlikely star, by the 1980s she would be recognised by fans on the streets of Paris. Mike Sagar-Fenton, who performed with Brenda, remarks that while back home she was simply: ‘Brenda from Penzance, one of us, doing rather well overseas. Unknown to us she could regularly fill the most prestigious halls in capitals all over Europe, meet and perform with the major stars of the day, shake hands with presidents and royalty, and conquer all she met with her music and supercharged personality.’

Brenda’s daughter, Sue Ellery-Hill, is a key contributor to the new Brenda Wootton archive. She says: ‘Since my mother’s death in 1994, I have worked to ensure that her musical and cultural legacy is well established, bringing out new CDs of old recordings, creating a website and publishing her biography. So I was hugely encouraged and gratified to be approached by film-maker Florence Browne with her ideas for a major project about Brenda – for once, it is not me doing the pushing!

Sue continues: “I fully believe my mother’s unique story and her songs are most certainly worth pushing. She used that remarkable voice, and the sheer force of her Cornish personality, to spread the language and culture of Cornwall worldwide. I’m really looking forward to working with Florence and Denzil Monk to support this very worthwhile project, and can’t wait to see the final result!”

Bosena is keen to hear from anyone with photos, recordings or memories of Brenda which they’d like to contribute to ‘Mordonnow’. During the summer there will be sessions for the public to bring their items in for scanning or photographing, and to chat about the project. For archive submissions and general enquires, contact Florence Browne ([email protected]).