An uplifting story of the triumph of love, inspiration and hope against all odds, laced with the song and dance of austere, 1940s Britain.

Ricky Braithwaite, an ex-RAF fighter pilot and Cambridge graduate, arrives in London in 1948. Despite his First Class degree in electronic engineering he is turned down for job after job in his chosen profession and discovers the reality of life as a black man in post-war England. Taking the only job he can get, Ricky begins his first teaching post, in a tough but progressive East End school.

Supported by an enlightened headmaster, the determined teacher turns teenage rebelliousness into self-respect, contempt into consideration and hate into love, and on the way, Ricky himself learns that he has more in common with his students than he had realised.

'funny and tough… an unlikely tale, beautifully told' — Express

'stark and engaging… a poetic period piece' — Whatsonstage.com

'a clever re-working… beautifully judged with warmth and a lot of humour' — British Theatre Guide

Choice of Straws