Eerie silence and ‘still surviving’: what happened next after steel town’s last blast furnace shut down

Exhibition in Port Talbot is part of project exploring how communities experience endings and transitions

Margaret Heggett, 95, does not remember a time when Port Talbot was ever quiet. Born and raised in the shadow of the steelworks, with a father, brother and husband who worked there, she never imagined what the town could look or sound like without its blast furnaces.

“I’m not saying it was beautiful, but there were jobs. We did know the closure was coming and we have to move with the times but it’s affected the town a lot and it’s very sad,” she said.