AN AMBITIOUS project to archive and present the Mercury Theatre’s 80 years of rich history has finally reached completion.

Mercury Voices started in 2017, after the National Lottery Heritage Fund awarded the project £80,000.

Its aim was to produce a comprehensive record that theatre fans of the future can delve into and explore, as well as showcase the evolution of the playhouse’s productions and design developments.

Included in the vast collection of artefacts, which will be stored by the Essex Record Office and digitally accessible on the Essex archive’s website, is a complete series of show programmes dating back to 1937, scripts, costume designs and production photographs.

To gather materials for the archive, the project’s team of volunteers spent 2,031 hours of their free time, researching, transcribing historical recordings, engaging with the community and holding exhibitions.

Colchester Recalled, a voluntary group that compiles over 100 years of recorded memories, also assisted the project by compiling a catalogue of oral histories and transcripts from actors, staff and former audience members.

Mercury Voices has already been seen by over 10,000 people, as a result of touring talks and exhibitions, and two resource packs for schools have been produced in a bid to weave the theatre’s glorious history into the curriculum.

Laura Davison, Joint Project Manager, praised the community’s support of the project: ‘‘Mercury Voices has been such a wonderful project. There has been so much support from the community, partners, staff and volunteers, that has truly enriched this project.’’

The completion of the Mercury Voices archive, which will now be continually added to, will be marked with a celebratory event on Monday 25 at the Mercury Theatre, Colchester.

It will run from 4-6pm.