Salone Stories

Episode 6 - The Athens of West Africa

Fri, 12 Jan 2024 12:00:00 +0100

Fourah Bay College has produced some of Africa’s most influential thinkers and leaders. It has also given Freetown an enduring nickname. Though the college struggled during Sierra Leone’s civil war, today it is leading a resurgent culture of learning and innovation. In the final episode in the series, Charlie Haffner wanders around campus and considers what “the Athens of West Africa” means two centuries after Fourah Bay College was founded.

With special thanks: H.E. David Moinina Sengeh and Professor Joe AD Alie

A podcast series produced by Novel Studios for Africell.

Presented: Charlie Haffner

Written and created: Charlie Haffner and Sam Williams

Edited: Nadia Mehdi

Executive producers: Sam Williams and Max O'Brien

Sound design and mixing: Naomi Clarke

Special thanks: Abdul Karim Sesay, Shadi Gerjawi, Eleanor Biggs, Claire Crofton, Pippa Smith and the Africell Impact Foundation.

Episode 5 - Bruno the Chimpanzee

Fri, 12 Jan 2024 12:00:00 +0100

A chimpanzee’s daring escape from a sanctuary near Freetown in 2006 captured the imagination of Sierra Leone. Almost twenty years later, Bruno remains in the wild, with an almost mythical status, seen by many as a symbol of Sierra Leone’s fiercely free spirit. In this episode, Charlie Haffner visits Sierra Leone’s steaming green rainforest to learn what the future holds for its wildlife.

With special thanks: Bala Amarasekaran and Francis Massaquoi

Episode 4 - Geraldo Pino and The Heartbeats

Fri, 12 Jan 2024 12:00:00 +0100

African music has never been more popular. Selling out stadia from Lagos to London to LA, Africa’s top artists are slick, stylish and social-media savvy. But there is another story: the risk to more precarious local music traditions in an age of Spotify and smartphones. In this episode, Charlie Haffner listens to the distinctive Salone soundtrack and considers its unsung influence on modern Afrobeats .

With special guests: Fantacee Wiz, the Tiwani Hunting Society, The Sierra Leone National Dance Troupe and the late Dr Adedayo Thomas

Episode 3 - Juliohs Siza

Fri, 12 Jan 2024 12:00:00 +0100

“Padi dem, kohntri, una ohl wey dey na Rom”. This is a Krio translation of one of Shakespeare’s most famous lines. Sierra Leone has a powerful tradition of poetry, song, and plays. In 1963, a playwright translated one of Shakepeare’s most complex works into Krio, Sierra Leone’s local language, in a defiant attempt to prove the worth and depth of Sierra Leone’s oral tradition. In this episode, Charlie Haffner digs the play up from the archives and asks what it tells us about contemporary Salone language and culture.

With special guests: Dame Judi Dench, Aminatta Forna and Raymond de’Souza George

Episode 2 - “High We Exalt Thee, Realm of the Free”

Fri, 12 Jan 2024 12:00:00 +0100

Sierra Leone became independent in 1961. As Independence Day approached, soldiers polished their boots, lawyers drafted a constitution, and two men wrote what would become Sierra Leone’s new anthem. In this episode, Charlie Haffner listens to “High We Exalt Thee, Realm of the Free” and uses it to chart Sierra Leone’s journey as a sovereign nation.

With special guests: Dr Sama Banya and Professor Joe AD Alie

Episode 1 - The Cotton Tree

Fri, 12 Jan 2024 12:00:00 +0100

Many countries have an iconic building. Sierra Leone had an iconic tree. The giant cotton tree which stood in the heart of Sierra Leone’s capital symbolised the country’s origins as a haven for freed slaves. Until the day it fell in 2023 it was regarded by locals as having mystical powers. In this episode (which was recorded before the tree came down) Charlie Haffner visits Freetown’s famous cotton tree and explains what it tells us about his home.

With special guests: Professor Joe AD Alie and Olivette Linda Barnett

Trailer - Salone Stories

Fri, 12 Jan 2024 12:00:00 +0100

Trailer - Salone Stories

Sierra Leone looks like a sleeping lion. Soaring from Africa’s Atlantic coast, Sierra Leone symbolises the modern African continent: conscious of the past and inspired by the future. Presented by legendary playwright Charlie Haffner, this new podcast series adapts an ancient oral tradition to explore the personalities, places and events that have shaped the story of one of Africa’s most extraordinary countries.