RETRACING ROUTES	T O F R E E D O M	The Story of Edith Bone 8pm Sunday 9th September St James Church, Spring Bank Tickets £5 (£3 conc.) from Bookstop

'Routes to Freedom' tells the story of Edith Bone.

Born in 1889, the daughter of a Hungarian solicitor, she qualified as a doctor in 1914.

Appalled by the hospital conditions for other ranks in the First World War, she turned her back on her upper class environment and became a communist. She travelled Europe for the Communist Party in the 20s and 30s. Driven from Berlin by the Nazis, she settled in England in 1933 and became naturalised; disillusioned with the Stalinist takeover of what she considered true communist principles, she left the Party.

In 1949 she returned to Budapest as a translator - she spoke six languages fluently. Sixty years old, without warning, she was arrested as a spy and spent seven years in solitary confinement. Released during the Hungarian uprising of 1956, she wrote a book- "SEVEN YEARS SOLITARY"- in 1957. She died in 1976, aged 87.

Her indomitable behaviour in prison, her refusal to give in, is an inspiring example of the indestructible power of the human spirit.

June and Tony Broughton met Edith Bone in 1974 and were so impressed by her story and her book, "Seven Years Solitary", that with the invaluable advice of Edith's sister and friends they dramatised it in 1989. They performed it under the title "ROUTES TO FREEDOM" at the Edinburgh Festival in 1990; the Dublin Festival, with a tour of Ireland in 1991; the European Theatre Festival in Antwerp in 1992 with a subsequent tour of Belgium, Germany and (supported by the British Council) Budapest. Hungary was enjoying its first taste of democracy at the time and audiences relished this dramatic experience involving their recent history.

In a platform performance specially devised for New Mills Festival 2001, June and Tony Broughton recreate scenes from their play, interlaced with anecdotes of their touring experiences in Ireland and Europe that underline the peaks and troughs encountered by actors on the road.

JUNE AND TONY BROUGHTON are professional actors with extensive experience in theatre, film and television. They live locally in Strines and are delighted to be engaged for this year's Festival.

The presentation runs without an interval and will last for approximately 80 minutes.