Upper 4 head to London to see The Woman in Black

Each year the Upper 4 head to London to watch a performance of The Woman in Black. It's a trip the girls look forward to and go on to remember and talk about all the way into Sixth Form.

The year group study the book by Susan Hill during the first half term of the year, during their lessons. The book is a ghost story, in which Arthur Kipps relays his haunting experiences at Eel Marsh House.

Upper 4 student Elise said "studying the book was very interesting, it had a good story line and I enjoyed reading it. We analysed the text in detail and produced character essays. We also made up our own chapter called 'Return to Eel Marsh House'".

The trip to see the play is a great opportunity for the students to see how novels can be adapted for the stage and, with this play, how suspense is developed and sustained. Elise also explained "it was was so nice to be able to go on trips again. The performance was a little scary but in a good way! It was relatively similar to the book but there was an unexpected twist at the end! We all really enjoyed it."

Mrs Spellman, Head of English expressed that she was delighted the year group were able to go as it is a Queen Anne's tradition for the girls, but one that last year's Upper 4 were unable to experience due to COVID restrictions. She said "It is always brilliant to see how much the pupils enjoy the performance! I never tire of seeing how excited they are by it. This year was particularly special because Dr Blechl found himself sitting next to the play’s director, Stephen Mallatratt! He was utterly delighted to watch our pupils engaging with the performance and made notes every time they screamed.”