What is it is like to be in a long-term  ‘coma’  – a vegetative or minimally conscious state?  Or to have a family member who is?   Come and meet Celia and Jenny Kitzinger whose sister, Polly,  was in a coma after being very severely injured in a car crash five years ago. Polly was not fully conscious again for  two years.  Celia and Jenny set up a research project with colleagues at York and Cardiff Universities to try to understand how decisions are made about severely brain injured patients in the context of modern medicine, how families cope with the situation, and what the implications are for all of us.  They have interviewed more than 60 people with experience of having a loved one in a long-term  coma, and have collaborated with their interviewees to produce a Postcard Exhibition, which will be on display this afternoon.  In this session Celia and Jenny highlight their collaborations with artists, including three sonnets by one of the North’s foremost poets, James Nash.  A highlight of the afternoon will be two short (10 min) performances from Eliza Gregory of her newly composed ‘coma music’ – based in part  on listening to clips from Celia’s and Jenny’s interviews with families.

Price: Free