The Hard Way

'The Hard Way': the story of Hannah Mitchell. From a remote hilltop farm in the Derbyshire moorlands to Manchester city magistrate. The Hard Way is a one-woman show of storytelling with song by acclaimed musician and composer Louise Jordan.

With two weeks' formal schooling behind her and through her sheer force of character, Hannah escapes domestic drudgery to become a campaigner, speaker, writer, suffragette, councillor and finally a magistrate.

'Life to me has been a great adventure'

A self-taught, self-made woman, Hannah leaves home aged 14 years, exchanging one exploitative situation for another. In 1906 she finds herself face to face with Winston Churchill at a public meeting and spends time in Strangeways prison. This show celebrates one woman's determination to take power in the face of insurmountable barriers, motivated by a desire to improve life for those around her.

'The work we began, the cause we sponsored, the faith we held will all remain to be carried on, we hope, by abler hands than ours.'

Created by Louise Jordan & Stephanie Jalland, Hoodwink; sound design Jules Bushell.
Recommended age 14 years and over.