Katie looks back at two twinning trips she took part on as a student in the 1980s.

Can you tell me about how you got involved in drama at school?

I've always loved singing and dancing. I was in a couple of shows in primary school. So when I was in secondary school, the first thing I did was to audition for the pantomime for that year. It was in 1980, it was the Wizard of Oz.

How did you get to go to Germany?

I’m not sure how that came about but the idea was to take the pantomime to a twinned city in Germany. I was only eleven so I was quite young back then and actually, that was the first time I had been abroad! It was quite scary, but I loved the show and I really wanted to do it. My parents were happy to let me, I can’t remember very well but I think they paid for it. It involved a four day coach trip to Germany. It was a very long trip and I remember I was very sick.

Do you have any deep impressions from Kiel?

We stayed with families there. And they didn’t speak English, and we didn’t speak German. We relied on signing and body language, but that worked out. My recollection of that trip is not as strong as the trip to Volgograd 3 years later. But I remember that I really enjoyed it, I really connected with the family. We stayed in touch for about 20 years. What I do remember is how the family made me feel. I felt very welcome. It felt very special even if we did not speak the same language. There was a girl my age there and we both had this little translation books and we tried to translate for each other. Then we wrote letters to each other for years in each other’s languages.

Three years after your trip to Kiel you went to Volgograd, can you tell me about that?

It was amazing. It was out of this world. I was 14 then so I remember more about this trip. I remember I nearly couldn’t go, because of the cost, but I was the lead of the show and had to make it happen. I used to sing in the clubs then so we ended up doing a whip round to raise funds.

What did you do in Russia?

We were there for 10 days. We went to Moscow and Volgograd we visited Lenin’s tomb. We went to the Bolshoi ballet in the Kremlin. I don’t think any of us realised how amazing that was going to be. We stayed in lovely hotels. I remember the people, the audiences were wonderful. At the end of the show we were holding hands singing We shall overcome and there was so much love in the room. All the Russian people we met were wonderful. I also remember the fear my mother had about me going behind the 'iron curtain'. She cried her eyes out, she was terrified about me going, but I wasn’t. I was excited about it.

How many people went on this trip and how did you travel?

We had quite a bus full, so I think about 50 people, cast and backstage people. We drove from Coventry to the airport and then we flew to Moscow and then to Volgograd a few days later. That was also my first time on a plane.

Can you tell us about the production?

It was Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Match Girl and I was the little match girl. We did the show at school first and then took it away on these twining trips. It was a wonderful production and do you know we ended up doing a pilot that was turned into a movie the next year with Twiggy and Roger Daltrey in the cast. I remember we were sponsored by Coventry City FC’s president because I have a photo with him holding a big statue we came back with from Russia. ^[1]

What were your impressions of Volgograd?

I found it beautiful. There were statues everywhere, parts felt very historic, tied to war period. We did some performances, they give the schools numbers and ours was School 50. I stayed in touch with some teachers there and we wrote to each other for a few years after the trip.

Did you get to know the people you went with better during the trip?

Yes. I am still in close relationships with some of the people I went with. And the teachers, too. For me, the love, connection and compassion we got from our drama and music department at school was a very special part of my childhood.

Did these trips have a lasting impact?

I think so. I have travelled a lot since and I have lived in different places. So much so that I have trained to be an independent travel agent. But these early experiences broadened my horizons. I guessed there was a world outside of Coventry and then I was able to see it. Most of my family have stayed in the same places, but I needed to go.

What advice would you give anyone going on a trip like these?

Go with an open mind, enjoy the experience and take on everything that you can. It is something you might not get again.

_{[1] This was Phil Mead who was a generous supporter of many causes in Coventry.}