SHHHHH!!

By Ollie Lee

Late last night while I was sitting at stage door there was a sudden cacophony of noise that is probably best described as a loud ‘shhhhhh’.

Earlier in the day our site manager Jason Nunn had told us that due to the large amount of rain there may be a leak in our office, so this was my first thought when I heard the noise, “Oh my goodness the roof has caved in!” Thankfully that wasn’t the case, with the office still intact I walked out into the concourse, walking a bit like I was in some cheesy spy movie fearful of what I was about to find, but the concourse was clear, the noise however was much louder.

On a mission now, I walked up the secret staircase that leads to the main station, and there, on platform 19 sat the source of the noise, a massive steam train!

Excitement overwhelmed me, I ran back down the stairs to grab my phone so I could take a photograph of the engine, when I got back to the platform, I joined the mass of public, including a health number of train spotters, all taking photographs and all completely exhilarated.

While fascinated by train-spotters I have never considered myself one of them, I am more of a train-spotter-spotter, but there is something about a real steam train that is just magical. It’s the sound they make, the mass of steam they produce, and because they are from another time, I think, that makes them so magnificent. I can’t imagine the Hogwarts train would have quite the same affect if it was electric, or Brief Encounters to be quite as romantic had it happened on a modern day platform.

It is something I love about our show, the excitement that was produced last night on platform 19 happens eight times a week in our theatre, even a friend of mine who saw the show recently noted, “Everyone claps the train when it comes on, they get so excited, it’s amazing!” While you might not consider yourself a train-spotter now I defy anyone to attend our show and not get a little swept away by the romanticism of a real steam train.

Daddy! My Daddy!!

By Ollie Lee

Watching Jenny Agutter run across the platform shouting “daddy my daddy” every Christmas is somewhat of a tradition in our family. I think it is mostly down to coincidence, it’s the one time of the year we are all together, and The Railway Children will always happens to be on television the same time we are gathered in the sitting room.

“Daddy my daddy” is undoubtedly the most iconic moment of The Railway Children story, and if you think it is emotional in the film, you ain’t seen nuthin’ to you have seen our show. Having worked as an usher I have now seen the play seven times, and every time our own Sarah Quintrell (who plays Bobby) rushes across the stage to the arms of her father, I get always get a little choked up. I think there is something about live theatre, about the lighting, the music, about Sarah Quintrell, that makes it all the more emotional.

But onto my main reason for writing –

A couple of days ago I was working in an ushering position called ‘foyer float’ which involves me being plugged into a radio and making sure the audience are where they should be. When the show finished, and I was saying goodnight to everyone as they were leaving, a girl about 6 came up to me, tears streaming down her face. “I’ve lost my mummy” she stuttered through sobs.

I reassured her, and sent a message out on the radio to say there was a missing child. While we were waiting I suggested to the girl that when her mother appeared again, she should do just as Bobby did at the end of the play and run and give her mum a big hug, I didn’t imagine she could execute it quite as well as she did. When her mum appeared (from the toilets) the little girl caught sight of her, took a deep breath, and ran across the foyer, shouting “mummy my mummy!” finally leaping into the arms of her mother, maybe not quite as iconic, but still rather dramatic and just like the mother says in the play, “Things do happen in real life that are rather like books, sometimes.”