Interviews & features

  • River Joy exhibition at Bristol Aquarium

    In September 2025, Bristol Aquarium hosted an exhibition about river campaigners on the Avon, including a curated selection of photography, contemporary artworks, and a video installation.

    Exhibition contributions from: Nic Kane, Charlotte Sawyer, Felicity Flashman, Aggie Nyagari, Becca Drazin, Mrs Meg Avon, Saskia Tomlinson, Jemima Homer, Eva Perrin, Katie Holloway.

    Image above: Nic Kane

  • 'Becca and the rights of the River Avon' (chapter) – Wild Service, Nick Hayes & Jon Moses

    Becca doesn’t come across as a natural rebel. ‘I’ve always been a bit scared of authority – of being told off. But the river is a place where I don’t recognise any authority.’

    For the past two years Becca has campaigned on behalf of the River Avon and its swimmers, a journey which started with […]

  • City of Swimmers : A radical history of Bristol’s pools, lidos and wild swimming – Stephen E. Hunt

    As sewage discharges have continued, Conham water campaigners have worked hard to keep the issue in local headlines, combining a citizen science initiative, which is collecting data on the issue, media interviews, and protests.

  • Rave on for the Avon (documentary film) – dir. Charlotte Sawyer

    A feature-length documentary film that follows a local community’s fight to save their bathing spot in unique, daring & distinctly Bristolian ways.

    The campaign

    There is an ecological emergency in English rivers. The human and wildlife population are at risk […]

  • 'Should rivers be given the same legal rights as humans?' – The Bristol Cable

    Perched on the dusty bank of the River Avon at Conham River Park just a few kilometres east of Bristol city centre, Becca Blease points to the treeline above her head. A Green woodpecker flies past, its characteristic ‘bouncy’ flight pattern making it easy to spot, while two damselflies skim the surface of the glossy water in front of us.