History and travel are two of my favourite things to talk about! So when I was asked by my client Millk Media to work on a voiceover project about the ancient city of Pompeii, I was delighted.
My role was a relatable voice from the past: Flavia, a young female Pompeii resident of AD75. Flavia is the guide for an interactive tour of ancient Pompeii, created by The Open University in collaboration with the BBC to accompany the documentary series Pompeii – The New Dig (2024) – a highly recommended series, still on iPlayer.
So how to recreate the voice of AD75? My Latin isn’t great….
I went instinctively for a naturalistic approach, imagining myself as an ordinary young woman, reminiscing as I wander streets I once knew, betraying an emotional connection to the places but resisting the urge to sound too dramatic or authoritative.
All of this occurred within my usual quick turn-around for self-recorded voiceover, from receiving the script in my studio in Yorkshire, to seeing the interactive go live on the BBC website. And soon after, the client chose to use my voice again for the launch of OU Connect, the BBC/OU collaboration.
I haven’t been lucky enough to visit Pompeii (yet) but since stepping into Flavia’s shoes, I will certainly know the neighbourhood a little better when I do! You can find the full BBC/OU interactive and take a wander with me here:
Emma Nabarro-Steel 
Leave a comment