North East Speak Their Name Suicide Memorial Quilt (2023)
CONTENT WARNING: This documentary contains discussions of suicide, grief, and bereavement. Viewer discretion is advised.
Documentary Summary
This documentary follows families in North East England who came together to create a memorial quilt honoring loved ones lost to suicide. The North East has the UK's highest suicide rates, with suicide being the leading cause of death for people under 35.
The film centers on bereaved parents and family members—including those who lost children Quinn, Samuel, Dyllon, Morgan, Graham, and Emily—as they participate in community workshops to create personalized fabric squares. Each square tells a unique story through carefully chosen imagery: graffiti designs, iPhone earphones, Sleeping Beauty tributes, photographs of beloved pets, hand-sewn staircases with song lyrics, and elephant motifs.
Beyond the craft itself, the project addresses the profound isolation that suicide-bereaved families often face. The workshops provided a rare space where participants could speak their loved ones' names freely, share memories, and find comfort in a community that truly understands their grief. The completed quilt tours public places across the region to provoke thought, catalyze conversations, and raise awareness about suicide as both a prevention and postvention initiative.
The film emphasizes a critical statistic: those bereaved by suicide are 65% more likely to die by suicide themselves, making support for the bereaved crucial for suicide prevention.
The film was a finalist in the 2024 Smiley Charity Film Awards, the world's largest cause-based film campaign.
About the Project
The North East Speak Their Name suicide memorial quilt was led by Tracey Beadle of Quinn's Retreat charity and Suzanne Howes. The 'Speak Their Name' movement originated in Greater Manchester during the pandemic. The North East quilt launched in November 2023 at Newcastle City Library and has since toured extensively throughout the region, with exhibitions at venues including Newcastle Cathedral, Whitley Bay Library, Sunderland Museum, The Word in South Shields, Bishop Auckland Town Hall, Locomotion Railway Museum Shildon, Barnard Castle, Peterlee Library, Seaham Community Centre, Stanley Louisa Centre, Consett Library, and Chester-Le-Street Library.
Quinn's Retreat was founded by Tracey Beadle after losing two children to suicide—17-year-old daughter Quinn in December 2018 and 21-year-old son Dyllon in October 2019. The charity provides free week-long respite breaks in static caravans for families bereaved by suicide and those struggling with mental health.
If you need support:
Samaritans: 116 123 (free, 24/7)
If U Care Share Foundation (North East England): 0191 387 5661 - provides practical and emotional support to those bereaved by suicide in Durham, Newcastle, Gateshead, North Tyneside, Northumberland, South Tyneside and Sunderland
Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide (SOBS): 0300 111 5065 (9am-9pm Monday-Sunday)
Shout: Text SHOUT to 85258 (free, 24/7)
PAPYRUS HOPELINEUK (for under 35s): 0800 068 4141 (24/7)
Photographs of the quilt squares
Photos of the quilt squares, used in the publication accompanying the exhibition and in the film, were taken by Matt.
