Departure Lounge

Video- 15 minutes long. A Lesson starter for age 16+ in subjects: Drama, English and Citizenship. Based on research into the oral histories of Britain’s Filipino community at the Centre of Filipinos in London in 2006. About families separated by continents, and their stories forming the basis for truthful, high-quality dramas, which genuinely celebrate diversity. Teachers can create unique learning activities to explore the many issues raise in the video.

The majority of the workshop participants were women, which is an accurate reflection of the make-up of the community. Filipino economic migration to Europe coincided with a demand for domestic workers. There were stories of wives and mothers leaving their families behind and becoming breadwinners for their extended families.

‘Departure Lounge,’ a dramatic monologue written and produced by Lorna Holder.
Nena, a woman in her forties, sits nervously, waiting for the boarding announcement in the departure lounge at the airport. Now returning to the Philippines after 25 years working in the U.K, Nena has to make a final decision; should she return to the Philippines, to the husband she hardly knows and son whose childhood she missed? Or should she remain working for the family who employ her and the ‘adopted’ English children she has raised?
The video has a supporting e-book The Ones We Left Behind available on Tes.