Combined Actors of Cambridge make a welcome return to the ADC theatre with an enchanting and classic tale of adventure, hope and loyalty. A Christmas treat for the whole family! Director, Sean Baker, tells us about what's in store.
Why did you want to direct The Railway Children?
It wasn’t a play that was on my radar, but Combined Actors suggested it, so I watched the footage of the 2008 York Railway Museum production and loved it, both for its energy but also for the storytelling style. I then read the script by Mike Kenny, and could see how it might work on the ADC stage. Luckily, I found plenty of talented people on the production side who agreed!
Tell us more about the ‘storytelling style’
It’s told in the form of a flashback by the three main characters – Bobbie, Peter and Phyllis – so throughout the play they’re jumping in and out of the action. It’s a great challenge for the actors as, at times, they’re children, playing out the scenes they remember, and at other times, they’re adults, ten years later, remembering these events.
A lot of people will be familiar with the 1970 movie with Jenny Agutter…
Yes, me included! I remember seeing it at the cinema as a child and really enjoying it. And its shadow really does looms large – the Yorkshire setting, for example, is now taken as gospel, but Edith Nesbit never said in the novel where the family moved to, only that they moved from their London home ‘to the country’. It was the film that decided on Yorkshire, and the writer of the version we’re doing has followed suit, meaning many of the actors have had to bring their best Yorkshire accent to the table.
Another key feature of the story, of course, is the railway itself, so can we expect trains?
Let’s just say it’s amazing what you can achieve with sound, light, special effects and a rich imagination!
The Railway Children
by Edith Nesbit, adapted by Mike Kenny
Tue 09 December- Sat 13 December 2025
ADC Theatre
Click here to book your tickets!
Photography by Paul Ashley