Spitfire Girls is inspired by the extraordinary and largely unknown true stories of the women who flew for the Air Transport Auxiliary during WW2, and the incredible bond that tied them together. Funny and heart-warming, this is an untold story of strength, courage, loss and hope.
Brought to the stage by actress and playwright Katherine Senior, who came cross the incredible stories of the women who joined the ATA to ferry fighter and bomber aircraft to the front line airfields in WW2, as well as return damaged aircraft for repair, and knew she needed to highlight their contribution.
“I remember thinking ‘I didn’t know women flew in WW2 but that would make for a really interesting piece of theatre’,” Katherine says.
‘These amazing women were not on the frontline but that doesn’t lesson their value because it was still very dangerous work’
So she started researching who they were and tracking them, and their relatives down, finding Candy Adkins the daughter of ATA’s Jackie Moggridge, who was also the first female pilot to fly commercial aircraft, and Mary Ellis who was 100 years old and kept all her archives when Katherine visited her on the Isle of Wight, although sadly no longer with us.
“These amazing women were not on the frontline but that doesn’t lesson their value because it was still very dangerous work,” Katherine explains. “And they had to be extra careful. They couldn’t make mistakes because any errors would-be blamed on being woman, so they had to be really on it.
‘for many it was also the best time of their lives. They were doing their bit and given an opportunity not available to women before’
“But for many it was also the best time of their lives. They were doing their bit and were given an opportunity not available to women before, so it was an adventure too.”
“More than that, they had to fly beneath the clouds using the landmarks below to guide them, because they didn’t have any navigation, which was problematic if there was bad weather or cloudy, so yes it was dangerous work.”
‘To put it into perspective, of the 168 female ATA pilots flying aircraft to front line airfields, 17 lost their lives’
To put it into perspective, 168 woman pilots took part in ATA operations flying aircraft to front line airfields around the UK, often with only rudimentary navigation aids, no radios or any kind of defences and, in consequence, 17 lost their lives during operational service.
Stunned by the stories she uncovered and their significance, Katherine set about crafting Spitfire Girls, which has become an enormous success: “People say it’s a really exhilarating play, and we’ve had lots of feedback about how touched people have been by it, which is incredibly gratifying.”
Coming to The Theatre Chipping Norton from May 14-17 with her theatre company Tilted Wig, Katherine explains: “Spitfire Girls flits between two periods 1943 and 1959 and loosely based on two sisters who both signed up to fly unbeknownst to each other. It opens in Bett’s pub The Spitfire near Southampton on NYE in 1959 when a woman called Dotty walks in, and then the audience is transported back to 1943 when the adventure begins.
‘we hope that Spitfire Girls has given their story legs and a legacy that will continue’
“It’s a memory play really, told from a story-telling perspective, about women and their relationships, experiences and adventures in the ATA as well as how WW2 affected everyone. So it’s certainly not a history lesson, although it is historically correct. I was quite meticulous about that, especially the flying, so we got experts in to show how their planes were flown.”
Katherine is still totally inspired by these incredible women, and delighted to ensure their legacy isn’t forgotten: “They were shape shifters and we hope to remind people how much. it’s not often a woman is called a hero and we would love to help change that.
‘They were shape shifters and we hope to remind people how much. it’s not often a woman is called a hero and we would love to help change that’
“And while a lot of people know about the ATA, and is committed to keeping its memory alive, there are also many people coming forward who didn’t know anything about these women, so we hope that Spitfire Girls has given their story legs and a legacy that can continue.”
Spitfire Girls is at The Theatre Chipping Norton from May 14-17. Book here: https://www.chippingnortontheatre.com/events/spitfire-girls
