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          Set her free placards

          Protest against forced deportations of women at 10.30pm tonight

          Steve Bray and police officer

          “They might as well have called it the Steve Bray law”: huge support for Mr Stop Brexit

          Police speak to Steve Bray

          Noisy protest warning and now a court summons for Mr Stop Brexit

          maths mind

          The mathematics of human behaviour: how my new model can spot liars and counter disinformation

          woman on boat

          Where have all the EU citizens gone, long time passing…?

          to seek asylum is not a crime

          Momentous week ahead for women trapped in detention in County Durham

          RMT official picket

          Rail strikes: is class solidarity back?

          Curfew bracelets

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          Sign saying welcome refugees

          World refugee day 2022

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          doctorbird

          Doctorbird (Jamaica 1998)

          Curfew bracelets

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          Söke

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          gymnast

          Culture of fear in British gymnastics uncovered by the Whyte Review

          Kennedy and Rhind

          Kennedy and Rhind: more time to enjoy a North East favourite

          Hoppings

          The Hoppings is back in Newcastle!

          Chi Onwurah MP

          Chi backs watchdog for fast fashion industry

          High Force waterfall

          Feeling the full force of Teesdale at the High Force Hotel

          A group of swimmers stand in the sea at sunrise.

          Interview with cold water swimmer Sarah Rowland

          Meat feast pizza

          Bella Italia launches new menu

          Ukrainian necklace

          Ukrainian Cultural Heritage: jewellery, accessories and some morale boosting art

          Leek and mushroom bake

          Leek and mushroom bake

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            Friends Action North East

            Friends Action North East: supporting people’s lives

            Söke

            Reflections on Söke and lessons to learn

            Visitors in the former Holy Trinity Church, Sunderland

            Seventeen Nineteen: Hidden Stories in Sunderland church

            Refugee week

            Sing up for refugee week in Newcastle!

            Lachlan and Ryan

            Top sports stars step in to help male suicide charity

            Older person enjoying TikTok

            Go glammas! How older people are turning to TikTok to dispel myths about ageing

            A group of volunteers in high vis jackets, with their backs to the camera, operate a table giving out food distributions.

            Charity helps feed communities amidst the cost of living crisis

            young people talking

            Counselling support for young refugees in the North East

            Russia and China flags with two people shaking hands

            Russia’s quasi-colonial dependence on China

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              RMT official picket

              Rail strikes: is class solidarity back?

              Visitors in the former Holy Trinity Church, Sunderland

              Seventeen Nineteen: Hidden Stories in Sunderland church

              Nigel Todd

              Nigel Todd remembered: a socialist legacy

              Three boys stand in front of a man. All three of them are stood in front of a fire engine.

              Firefighting Uncle helping to raise £260,000 for nephew with rare cancer

              Kennedy and Rhind

              Kennedy and Rhind: more time to enjoy a North East favourite

              Campaigning for Samuel in Loftus Market Place, 1906 - "More Boots - less Beer."

              Opposition to the first immigration bill

              dead fish

              Defra on the defensive over toxic dumping in Tees Bay

              Secret Garden

              The Secret Garden at Hexham Abbey Gardens

              empty purse

              Cost of living crisis could put thousands more North East families into deeper poverty

              Trending Tags

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                Titanic coming out of Southampton

                The 110th anniversary of the Titanic’s departure

                There is an England

                There is an England

                Prime Minister Boris Johnson signs the Withdrawal Agreement with the European Union"

                The parody of disinformation: Boris Johnson on Ukraine and Brexit

                Boris Johnson’s comments on Ukraine and Brexit are an insult

                TV Agency staff jumping in the air

                The TV Agency celebrates 10th anniversary with global success

                North East of County Dublin

                North East of England and North East of County Dublin: Compare and contrast

                North Sea oil rig

                Copping out of COP: Ukraine, fossil fuels and nuclear fusion

                Placard with Boris Johnson as a clown

                Dictators, media and mobility: erosion of identity, sustenance and safety

                close up on a child's eye

                Racism and misogyny where there should have been safeguarding and security

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              The Secret Garden at Hexham Abbey Gardens

              One of the themes of the Secret Garden is the sense of isolation and loneliness, which resonates heavily in the Covid era.

              Phil CoghillbyPhil Coghill
              16-06-2022 15:06
              in Northumberland, Theatre
              Secret Garden

              Photo by Matt Jamie

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              This modern take on the classic children’s book by Frances Hodgson Burnett sees city girl Lennox staying at her uncle’s estate in rural Northumberland. Initially lonely and despondent with her situation, she eventually befriends her ill cousin Cooper and neighbour Dylan and the three end up going on a journey of self-discovery as they try to uncover the mystery of a secret and hidden garden on the grounds.

              Intimate staging for the Secret Garden

              I must admit that I haven’t read the source material so I can’t comment on how accurate an adaptation this is, but viewing the play as its own piece, I found The Secret Garden to be very enjoyable. The production was performed in a spiegeltent, and as a result was very minimalist, using only a handful of actors and props on a small stage. This worked to its advantage, giving the piece a feeling of intimacy.

              The story is framed by the characters recounting it to the audience, which adds to this intimacy as well as giving you a feeling that you are a character participating along with the story as well. A clever artistic choice to get around the limited cast is that the uncle character does not appear on stage and is instead represented by one of the actors speaking into a microphone. This helps to signify how distant and cut off he is from the other characters.

              Good performances

              There’s plenty of humour, with Dylan providing most of the best moments, and the folkish musical numbers are lovely, but this is also balanced out with strong dramatic moments that are well performed by the cast. One of the themes of the story is the sense of isolation and loneliness, which resonates heavily in the Covid era. There are also themes about the magic and wonder of nature, coming to terms with grief, learning to let go of your child and allowing them to be their own person, and how friendship can help us grow as a person.

              Much of the audience was made of families, as you would expect. However, there were also quite a few groups of adults who got into the spirit of things just as much as the kids. They sang along with the musical numbers and cheered at the end. This is a show very much recommended to everyone that will hopefully encourage the younger generation to seek out the book (it’s certainly made me want to).

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