From 1997 to 2021, Nicky Gavron delivered close to a thousand speeches – to community groups, international conferences, Labour party gatherings, and everyone in between. Each one was crafted with purpose: to celebrate, persuade, inspire, and drive change.
This project brings a curated selection of those speeches to life through performance. Young actors from Jacksons Lane, the Highgate arts centre where Nicky’s own activism began, breathe new energy into her words, passing her vision and ideas to a new generation.
Explore the speeches.
Watch the performances.
Discover the legacy of a woman who
spent six decades fighting for London’s
environment, communities, and future.
Nicky Gavron was a pioneering environmentalist and Labour politician whose influence shaped London for over sixty years. As Deputy Mayor of London (2000-2008), she championed the city’s first climate change strategies, co-founded the C40 Cities initiative, and fought tirelessly for sustainable transport, affordable housing, and community development.
From local councillor in Haringey to international climate advocate, Nicky never stopped pushing boundaries. She spoke from the heart, built consensus, and always looked ahead to new solutions for old challenges.
In 2024, following her death, her archive of speeches found a permanent home at the London Archive, a testament to a life dedicated to making cities better for everyone.
This project began with a discovery – nearly a thousand speeches unearthed from Nicky’s archive. Meet the team of archivists, filmmakers, actors and theatre-makers who brought her words back to life.
Jacksons Lane holds special significance in this project. Nicky was a co-founder of the arts centre in the 1970s, transforming an old church into a vibrant community space. It became a hub for creativity, inclusion, and civic engagement – values that ran through everything Nicky did.
Performing her speeches here closes a circle: the place where her activism began now carries her voice forward to new audiences.
Nicky Gavron was a pioneering environmentalist and Labour politician whose influence helped shape London for over sixty years. As Deputy Mayor of London (2000-2008), she championed the city’s first climate change strategies, co-founded the C40 Cities initiative, and fought tirelessly for sustainable transport, affordable housing, and community development.
Nicky Gavron died in August 2024. Her papers and documents are now housed at the London Archive, including close to a thousand speeches delivered between 1997 and 2021.
This website showcases a curated selection of those speeches, brought to life through performance by young actors at Jacksons Lane, the very theatre where Nicky’s activism began. The readings imbue her words with new energy, ensuring that her ideas, her vision, and her unwavering commitment to a better future are passed on to a new generation.