BBC archives to help people with dementia

ARTS CORRESPONDENT MANY people feel nostalgic when they see clips of television from days gone by.

But memories inspired by footage of Sir David Attenborough’s encounter with gorillas, Kenneth Clark strolling through civilisations and the theme tune to have been shown to have a greater purpose – helping those with dementia.

The BBC has launched a permanent archive of pictures, video and audio clips as part of a project to help people with dementia, their family and carers. and Also featured is Jacob Bronowski describing in 1973, while other notable television figures seen in clips are Sir Michael Parkinson, Sir Patrick Moore and Delia Smith.

News footage includes Royal visits by the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh, speeches by Baroness Thatcher when prime minister and the moon landings.

Called the BBC RemArc, the website is designed to be intuitive to use, and has been redesigned following months of feedback.

It was created by the BBC’s Archive Development team in conjunction with Dundee University, the University of St Andrews and the Alzheimer’s Society.

It contains around 250 video clips, 250 audio clips and more than 1,000 images.

Many items have not been available to the public since their first broadcast.

Dr Norman Alm, an honorary research fellow at the University of Dundee, said: “RemArc is a boon to people with dementia and just as importantly to their carers, who can sit back, relax, and enjoy the conversation, with RemArc doing all the heavy-lifting of supporting the interaction and keeping it lively, engaging and, importantly, unpredictable.”

Kathryn Smith, director of operations at the Alzheimer’s Society, said: “We know reminiscence can be a powerful way of connecting people affected by dementia with their memories and improving their mood.

“We have enjoyed working closely with the BBC.

“People who have used RemArc talk positively of it as a helpful reminiscence tool and enjoyable activity.”