Opening at the start of Black History Month, Friday 3rd October, Mrs B: A Handsworth Life explores the home life of Anita Eutedra Bartley, fondly known as Mrs B. A member of the Windrush generation, Mrs B was born in St Catherine, Jamaica, and arrived at Heathrow in February 1955 to start a life in Handsworth, Birmingham with her husband John.
Though Mrs B passed away in 2020, visitors will hear her story in her own words. From leaving the only home she knew and travelling across the globe to build a new life in Handsworth, to the racism she faced and finding her place in the local community as an elder.
The exhibition features an installation of films, photographs and domestic objects exploring Mrs B’s life — a life typical of many from the Windrush generation, including Birmingham Back to Backs’ last occupant, George Saunders, a tailor from St Kitts, who, like Mrs B, settled in Birmingham in the 1950s.
Items in the show include a Blaupunkt, Bluespot radiogram, common in many British-Caribbean homes during the 60s and 70s, plus ornaments and furniture typical of the period. The Bluespot was the centerpiece of family life in Landsdowne Road, playing songs by artists such as Otis Redding, Toots and the Maytals, Jimmy London, and Clancy Eccles.
The exhibition includes an installation of photographs, Big Woman Hats featuring Mrs B’s wide and varied hat collection. Each hat presents a different moment in Mrs B’s life, starting with the bright and optimistic hat she bought in Jamaica ahead of her travels to the UK.
Commenting on the exhibition, Isobel Grove, Senior Programming and Partnerships Officer at National Trust Birmingham Back to Backs, said:
“Items on show in Mrs B: A Handsworth Life will be nostalgic for many who grew up during the 60s and 70s – especially those who grew up in British-Caribbean households. But the exhibition also touches on the tensions and racism those from the Windrush generation and their families faced. Home, or ‘Little Jamaica’ as it was fondly referred to by Mrs B’s eldest daughter, was a safe space away from hostile interactions on the streets, at work or at school. This exhibition offers a glance into that, and the importance of home and community.”
This exhibition is in partnership with artist/curator Peter Grego, a former lecturer at Birmingham City University. His work encompasses a range of media, in a practice that engages with issues of nationality, location, identity, and historical memory.
In 1993 Peter produced a series of digitally manipulated monoprints, Family Albums, inwhich he explored the idea of families and family histories intertwining to create hybrid identities. The project has been revisited for this exhibition with several images from Family Albums included.
Peter, who is also the son-in-law of Mrs B, said of the exhibition:
“The exhibition captures snippets of one person’s story, my mother-in-law Mrs B, as it connects to the history of working people from across the globe who have built their lives here. And I would hope that it may open up a conversation about the contribution made by those of many generations who have made new lives for themselves in the UK.”
The exhibition opens Friday 3rd October and runs until May 2026. It’s free to enter and visitors do not need to have been on a tour of the Back to Backs. Viewing times are Tuesday and Wednesday 1pm – 4:30pm, Thursday to Saturday 10am – 4:30pm and Sundays 10:30am – 4:30pm. The entrance to the exhibition space is via the second-hand bookshop, located on Hurst Street. Booking is not required to visit the exhibition.
To find out more about the exhibition, or to learn more about the Back to Backs, visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk/birmingham-back-to-backs.