Discovery Pens have landed at Winchester Science Centre, the latest step in our Charity’s mission to make science accessible to everyone. At Wonderseekers, we are committed to ensuring that all our experiences are people centred, which is why all the audio descriptions have been personally recorded by Jenny Hoppé, the Community Engagement Officer at Wonderseekers. Here’s what she had to say about the experience.

How long did it take you to record everything?

“I can’t really remember; it was multiple months. The entire process of writing all the scripts to then editing them to recording them all was about six months. Recording them took at least a month and a half.”

What was your favourite exhibit to record?

“I liked recording for the giant guitar because it’s such a cool thing to talk about, being able to say it’s a 10-foot guitar! I also liked recording some of the exhibits in Humprey [where families have to reunite Humphrey the whale with his pod] and telling the story of Humphrey as you make your way around the exhibit. And the shake table, as I get to set people the challenge of building a tower.”

Which exhibits did you have to record the most?

“It was Lightyear FM because the recording is over 4 minutes long and the software I was using, I couldn’t combine clips so if I made a mistake halfway through, I had to start again. And once I got two sentences from the end, made a mistake, and had to start again. It took me at least 5 or 6 times to record it.”

How do you feel about being the voice of the Discovery Pens?

“It’s quite cool, it means whenever I test them, I cringe a little bit because I have to hear my voice. But it’s nice to think that my voice is part of helping people experience the Science Centre in a different way. And hopefully people get more out of the Science Centre than they would if it [audio description] wasn’t there. It’s also quite strange to think that my voice will last as long as the Discovery Pens are here.”

How do you feel about having Discovery Pens available at the Science Centre? What impact do you think they’ll have?

“I feel really positive. It allows more independence for visually impaired visitors, visitors who have English as their second language, and any other visitor who feels like they would benefit from an audio description. They’re not relying on another member of their party to read or explain things to them. My hope is that the descriptions are helpful while also being open-ended enough that I’m not forcing visitors down a particular channel, I want people to explore the exhibits with as much freedom as possible, to get want they want out of it.”

Find out more about the Discovery Pens and the accessibility facilities at the Science Centre.