22 May – 15 Jun 2025
Loading Bay
Tape Letters
Modus Arts
An exhibition that explored migration on tape.
Lost and found: we heard messages recorded and sent back to Pakistan by new arrivals at this special exhibition.
Tape Letters looked back on life in Bradford for new arrivals in the days before technology connected us all in an instant. This free exhibition unearthed the practice of recording messages on cassette and sending them to friends and family, popular with Pakistani migrants to the UK from the 1960s to the ’80s – and gives us a unique insight into this long-lost method of communication.
The project began when artist Wajid Yaseen discovered his own family’s history of sending personalised cassette tapes to relatives in Pakistan. Initially focused on the north, Tape Letters has now sourced cassettes and completed oral history interviews with people from right across England and Scotland – including Bradford, the focus of this exhibition. In the gallery space visitors could listen to original cassette recordings, hear oral histories, read transcripts, see portraits – and journey back decades to a very different world.
With thanks to the archive contributors who participated in Tape Letters England, made possible by The National Lottery Heritage Fund and Arts Council England.
Full project credits available at tapeletters.com/credits
Past event
Were you at this event?
Complete our feedback form and let us know what you thought.
Share your feedbackRelated Events
On display now
Tower of Now
Saad Qureshi
This soaring sculpture explores what it means to be British – and celebrates Bradford’s dazzling diversity.
May 2026
Extraordinary Portraits with Bill Bailey
Breathtaking portraits – incredible personal stories.
On display now
Balancing Acts
Sam Shendi
A bespoke, playful structure created to celebrate the community and history of BD5.
On display now
40 Years of Checkpoint
Jamie Steward
Bradford’s West Indian community centre takes the spotlight in a vibrant new street artwork.
On display now
Breathe Breathe Breathe
Ricky Also in collaboration with Zayn Malik
Zayn Malik's lyrics make up this bold typographic artwork in Bradford City Centre, part of BD: Walls.
On display now
