Stronghold of Happiness

The African quote "When an old man dies a library burns down" spurred me on to write this screenplay, before it slips from living memory. Set mainly in southern England during WWII, the film includes the true story of the RAF's secret mission to Russia in 1941, where they were a part of the first Arctic convoy to leave the United Kingdom. Interspersed within those dark days is the love story between Peter Samways and Ella Harvey, who each experience life-changing events - Ella on the home front and Peter on the battle front. I wanted to turn the tables on the usual narrative about war and look at the unspeakable traumas and conflicts sometimes experienced by vulnerable women left at home. Threaded throughout the story are local characters who innocently reveal the humour, language and traditions which have spanned the generations, little realising they are standing on the cusp of a vanishing world.
Devina Symes