A play about one family’s experience of the Windrush generation written by an actress who has been in Coronation Street and Emmerdale, was performed at a Salford pub.
Called Windrush Warriors, the comedy drama was written by Nicola Gardener to mark this year’s Black History Month.
It was put on at The Kings Arms for two nights and gave Salfordians the chance to enjoy the work of actress and playwright Nicola and director John Klark.
Nicola, who has also appeared in The Royal, said: “In the aftermath of World War II, Britain was in dire need of a rebuild so the Government turned to the Commonwealth for help to rebuild the country.”
The Windrush Warriors is set in a community centre at a time when the children of the Windrush generation faced deportation.
The play revolves around the experience of four pensioners who regularly meet at a community centre.
Nicola said: “I have written a play in which one of the people came over with her mother when she was about ten years old, and she has been sent a letter by the Home Office saying that “you’re having your immigration status investigated.”
The characters, who are all retired and have lived in England for as long as they can remember, decide to fight back against the Government.
“They were clamping down on people who they considered were not citizens of the UK. Unfortunately, they managed to kind of pinpoint the Windrush generation.
“They were actually invited to come to this country by the British Government who wished to rebuild the economy after World War 2.
“They went to their Empire, to the Commonwealth and said look there’s jobs for you, there’s going to be homes for you. Come from these Caribbean countries and come to England which is your motherland, and you will receive a hearty welcome and we need you to help us rebuild our economy post war.
“Hundreds and thousands of people took up that invitation.”
Britain had borrowed a significant amount of money from the US to finance expenditures in the Second World War. Aerial bombing had destroyed cities, and there were mass shortages in labour and goods.
“They came by sea, air, and they set up home here. A lot of them came on their parents’ passports but what happened in these recent years is that the Home Office destroyed landing papers (in 2010) so people couldn’t prove that they had arrived in this country.
“And because they came on their parents’ passports once their parents had died, the children of the Windrush generation are the ones that were really targeted.”
The term Windrush comes from the name of a ship HMT Empire Windrush that brought one of the first large groups from the Caribbean to England in 1948.
“There was a backlash from the black community. I know many black MPs who stood up and said you can’t do this.
“Across the UK there was a tremendous outcry and the Conservative government had to hold their hands up and say, we got it wrong and therefore we are going to give compensation to these people whose lives have been impacted.
“I believe it’s a very small percentage of people who have received compensation for that trauma that happened to their lives. Because they had no status they lost their jobs, their driving licences were revoked. Many were actually deported.”
It was found that many Commonwealth citizens, especially members of the Windrush generation, were wrongly detained and deported.
The play features a strong comedic element to contrast its sad but important message.
“We black people love to laugh so therefore there’s a lot of comedy. In the midst of everything they still find humour, they still find time to laugh and just try and cheer themselves up. So, to the comedy drama there is a serious element in the show but there’s lots of comedy too. There’s enjoyment and entertainment for everybody.”
Black History Month is celebrated annually every October. Events can be found online and on social media.
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